A bullish mood continues to prevail in the Turkish hot rolled coil (HRC) market, though the key suppliers prefer not to give firm offers now, as they are specifically following the issue of the cancellation of tax rebates in China. Still, a lot of uncertainty exists, while both China and the CIS will be mainly out of the market next week due to the May holidays.
In the local market in Turkey, the HRC mills seem to have stopped offering officially, while mainly bullish moods have been reported. While last week $1,030-1,050/mt ex-works levels were offered, this week many market sources report producers’ indicative targets at $1,060-1,070/mt ex-works. Some have even voiced $1,070-1,110/mt ex-works, which is certainly considered to be overpriced. Export HRC offers from Turkey have increased by $10/mt to $1,030-1,050/mt FOB, with small deals closed to the south of the EU within this range.
In the import segment, Russia’s MMK, as reported earlier, sold at least 20,000 mt of HRC at $1,030/mt CFR with a further increase in offers to $1,050/mt CFR. Bids have reportedly been ranging at $1,035-1,040/mt CFR, with no positive feedback from the mill. In addition, Turkey has started to receive offers from Russia’s OMK at $1,035/mt CFR for July shipments, SteelOrbis has learned. The latest price from Ukraine’s Metinvest has been reported at $1,030/mt CFR, while some sources say the supplier has decided to postpone negotiations for now. “CIS pricing will be clear closer to mid-May when they are back from holidays. Also, a lot of uncertainty exists regarding China, specifically regarding the CRC and HDG rebates,” a source said.