Hot rolled coil (HRC) prices in Turkey have continued to climb, though they are mainly pushed by higher production costs rather than by livelier demand. Although some minor lots have been purchased, though demand overall is still not sufficient.
Local HRC buyers have been reporting that they are receiving offers from the mills at $700-730/mt ex-works base for November production, while early last week it was possible to book at $660-680/mt CFR. Small sales were indeed concluded in the mentioned range, but later the producers decided to increase their prices due to higher import scrap levels and the anticipated further rise of energy costs. “Mills say nothing below $700/mt is profitable now for HRC, which is a pity because imports are competitive,” a source told SteelOrbis.
Ex-Russia HRC from one supplier has slid to $590/mt CFR as a workable level and it has not been accepted by the producer, which has been aiming to sell at $600/mt CFR and above. South Korea is now in the market with $630-640/mt CFR offers, up from $620-625/mt CFR sales in the past week.
