Demand in the local Turkish hot rolled coil (HRC) market has remained at low levels during the past week, since buyers have continued to adopt a wait-and-see stance, still postponing their HRC purchases amid their strong expectations of downward movement in domestic HRC prices and due to the declines seen in Chinese flat steel prices as of the beginning of May. In addition, no new import HRC price offer to Turkey has been heard during the past week, strengthening the uncertainty regarding Turkish flat steel producers' prices. Under the current circumstances, market sources report that Turkish steel producers' HRC offers to their domestic market have been heard to decline by an average of $25/mt week on week to $550-570/mt ex-works.
Meanwhile, slack domestic demand has continued to impact the Turkish HRC spot market in which prices have softened further. While HRC prices given by traders in the Eregli region have remained unchanged, hot rolled pickled and oiled coil (HR P&O) prices in the region have decreased by $5/mt, both week on week. Meanwhile, HRC quotations from traders in the Gebze region have declined by $15/mt on the upper end week on week.
The domestic sales prices of traders for local and imported hot rolled flat steel products in the Eregli and Gebze regions of Turkey are as follows:
Product |
Price ($/mt) |
|
Eregli |
Gebze |
|
2-12 mm HRC |
520-540 |
560-580 |
1.5 mm HRS |
560-580 |
590-610 |
2-12 mm HRC (for large tonnages) |
520-540 |
|
3-12 mm HR P&O |
580-600 |
600-620 |
The above prices are ex-warehouse and for advance payments, exclusive of 18 percent VAT.