Following the attempts to increase their prices last week, the suppliers of the import hot-rolled coils (HRC) to Turkey have stepped back due to silent demand and absence of sales and even active negotiations. Low business activity has also resulted in discounts for the Turkish origin of HRC both in the domestic and export markets, putting additional pressure on the import segment.
HRC offers from Ukraine rolled back by $30/mt over the week to $1,010-1,020/mt CFR depending on the coil weight in the official offers. Buyers have been reporting that $1,000/mt CFR level is also on the table for negotiation but no deals have been reported just yet. Russian mills have been mainly standing at $1,050/mt FOB early this week but the level of $1,020/mt FOB is considered achievable, though not workable for the Turkish customers.
Ex-India offers are heard at $1,020-1,030/mt CFR this week, down by around $30/mt since mid-June. “No deals yet but the drop after the recently attempted rebound means the prices are not stable and might go below $1,000/mt CFR. So the buyers prefer to wait,” a source told SteelOrbis.
Turkey’s domestic HRC prices have been mainly reported at $1,120/mt ex-works and down to $1,100/mt ex-works from some mills, while a week ago the mills were standing at $1,130-1,150/mt ex-works. Still, according to buyers, the producers prefer not to voice the official offers much and ask for direct enquiries and bids. On exports, the level of HRC offers from Turkey has been reported at $1,100-1,130/mt FOB depending on the supplier, $20/mt down over the week.
