Import flat steel demand in Turkey has remained at low levels over the past week. Amid both the slowness of the summer season and the concerns of the Turkish lira losing strength against the US dollar given the tensions between the US and Turkey over the latter’s S-400 missile purchase from Russia, Turkish buyers are still limiting their purchases only in line with their needs.
On the other hand, despite the weakness of demand, CIS-based flat steel suppliers are unwilling to cut their export offers due to the fall observed in their export supply. In the short term, no recovery in demand is expected due to the ongoing slack summer season. Also, Turkish buyers are maintaining their cautious stance as regards new deals.
As a result, ex-CIS flat steel offers to Turkey have remained stable week on week, with ex-CIS hot rolled coil (HRC) and cold rolled coil (CRC) offers still standing at $500-520/mt CFR and $575-600/mt CFR, respectively.