Latest situation in Turkish stainless steel market

Market sources state that Turkish mills' local offers for prime quality 304/2B stainless steel cold rolled coil (CRC) of 2.0 mm thickness for January production have declined by $150/mt over the past week to the range of $2,500-2,550/mt ex-works, for January shipments. In the given period, Turkish traders' local stainless steel offers in the spot market have also decreased, by approximately $45/mt to the range of $2,650-2,700/mt ex-warehouse. According to Turkish traders, demand has as expected been on the low side since the beginning of 2015 due to the decent stock levels reported at the end of December.
 
On the other hand, according to market sources, offers from Turkey to the export markets for the same stainless products have remained stable over the past 10 days in the range of $2,500-2,550/mt ex-works. With the euro losing strength against the US dollar, European markets have become more attractive, while market sources report that suppliers which conclude transactions on US dollar basis will need to reduce their prices to be able to compete in the European market. Hence, the stable trend of Turkish stainless steel export prices may change in the coming days and prices may trend downwards.
 
Meanwhile, offers for prime quality 304/2B stainless steel cold rolled coil (CRC) of 2.0 mm thickness from China and Taiwan to the Turkish market have declined by $50/mt on the upper end over the past week to the range of $2,400-2,500/mt CIF.
 
The cash and settlement nickel price at the London Metal Exchange (LME) has decreased by $310/mt since January 2, closing the day at $14,570/mt on January 15. Market players state that nickel prices have been declining since the beginning of 2015 and, if the trend continues, it will eventually impact on stainless steel prices negatively.