Steel plate prices have continued going down in Turkey, under pressure from lower hot-rolled coil (HRC) offers, limited end-user activity, and pressure from buyers resulting from rather aggressive import offers. However, some optimism is also seen, given the recent scrap price improvement, which might impact the flats market positively. Suppliers believe that stronger scrap prices may at least prevent prices for plate from dropping further.
In the import segment, South Korea has remained the lowest in the market with offers at $1,100/mt CFR for September deliveries. “The South Koreans have become more aggressive for Turkey, but they are still very high in the EU,” a local source said. As for offers from Europe, Liberty Galati is at $1,220-1,250/mt CFR, down $30/mt on the lower end over the week. Bulgaria’s Stomana has decided to keep its offers at $1,300/mt CFR, but buyers believe the mill will be forced to drop its offers soon. Macedonia-based Makstil, according to some sources, offered $1,250/mt CFR to some specific customers, but the information has not been confirmed by the time of publication. In addition, there are offers from China for the shipbuilding grade of the plate at $1,050/mt CFR, SteelOrbis has learned.
Taking into account the situation in the import market and the mood among buyers, Turkey’s Erdemir has decreased its price by around $3-50/mt to $1,250-1,270/mt ex-works for S235JR and to $1,280-1,300/mt ex-works for S355JR. The local retail prices in Turkey have remained relatively stable over the week at $1,250-1,300/mt ex-warehouse.
