Turkish hot-rolled coil (HRC) market has recently witnessed an increased number of import offers. In addition to the traditional ex-CIS material, HRC from the EU and Brazil have been offered to Turkey lately. Moreover, some of the mentioned suppliers have succeeded in closing medium-sized deals.
European suppliers have returned with export offers to the Turkish market, under pressure to redirect some HRC volumes due to the unfavorable situation in the domestic automotive segment. According to sources, two suppliers have managed to sell around 30,000-40,000 mt in total at $910/mt CFR to three buyers. However, some sources report that levels lower than $900/mt CFR are also in the market, although the information has not been confirmed by the time of publication. Moreover, some deals have been closed to Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia, with no price information being disclosed just yet.
In addition, Turkey has been receiving ex-Brazil HRC offers varying from $890-910/mt CFR for January deliveries. However, no interest has been seen from the buyers’ side. Ukraine’s Metinvest has reportedly been offering $905-910/mt CFR to Turkey after having sold 10,000 mt at $900-905/mt CFR Turkey at the end of last week. Russia’s MMK is staying away from the market with official offers for now, but, according to buyers’ estimations, it will target not less than $905/mt CFR next week.
Local HRC prices in Turkey have remained relatively stable at $920-940/mt ex-works with some mills voicing offers at $950/mt ex-works. The mills report demand has been quite slow, partly due to sufficient stocks but also because of the approaching holidays. Export offers have been settled at $920-930/mt FOB in official offers, while earlier levels lower than $900/mt FOB had been considered available.
In the import slab segment, according to sources, the latest deals from the CIS were closed at $750-755/mt CFR since mid-October for at least 50,000-55,000 mt. Some mills are still in the market, but the new offers are reportedly $20-30/mt higher, which is not yet considered acceptable in Turkey.
