Domestic hot rolled coil (HRC) offers in Turkey remain strong with some mills insisting on $510/mt ex-works base, while some are ready to negotiate at a minimum of $520/mt ex-works, while small lots for closer delivery are being priced at $530/mt ex-works and above. At the end of last week, the average HRC offer level from Turkish mills was at $500/mt ex-works. Mills report that HRC is available only for November deliveries, but buyers believe that some volumes for October may also be available.
Export offers have increased by around $10/mt over the past week to $500-515/mt FOB for November shipments. According to sources, some deals have been closed to Italy at $500-510/mt FOB, but generally the export business remains challenging for Turkish mills.
In the import segment, the allocation from the CIS is very much limited as half of the mills are sold out. The latest deals were closed for ex-Metinvest HRC at $490/mt CFR for small coils, versus sales at $475-485/mt CFR. MMK has hiked its price idea from $490/mt CFR to $495-500/mt CFR in targets. Earlier NLMK sold 15,000 mt of HRC at slightly below $500/mt CFR, as SteelOrbis reported. Indications from South Korea are at $550-560/mt CFR, levels which are not workable in Turkey at all. At the beginning of the week, an offer from the EU was voiced at $497/mt CFR, but later on the supplier stepped back.