Along with the uncertain situation in the scrap market and low demand for flats, aggressive import offers have put additional pressure on Turkey’s local hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices. Russian mills, who have been having much trouble exporting their products, have decided to offer very low levels to the Turkish market. As a result, local HRC prices in Turkey have weakened, dragging down the workable levels for coated and cold-rolled (CR) steel.
The latest offers for HRC from Russia for July shipments have been reported at $615-620/mt CFR from some suppliers, while the one mill not under sanctions yet has been considering $660-670/mt CFR, sources report. At the end of last week, ex-Russia indications were at $680-700/mt CFR levels, while buyers had been considering $650/mt CFR as being possible to achieve. “It seems like Russia is killing the market here,” a source said. Along with Russia, only India is offering to Turkey, having decreased its prices by $30-40/mt since the end of last week to $670-680/mt CFR, according to market information.
Following the mentioned developments, according to sources, the domestic market price level for HRC in Turkey is at $680-720/mt ex-works depending on the mill, its sales position, the size of the order and the shipment term. Mainly HRC for August deliveries is on the table, but some limited volumes for July might be still possible. “The price of $680/mt ex-works or even $10/mt lower levels should be possible for large orders,” a trader said. Late last week, the market was at around $700-730/mt ex-works. Export offers have also decreased to $700-720/mt FOB, but, according to some sellers, $680/mt FOB would most probably not be denied by some mills, especially for sizeable orders.
Lower HRC prices have pulled down other flats prices in Turkey. Currently, CRC and HDG offers in Turkey are at $850-880/mt ex-works, $10-20/mt and $20-40/mt down over the past week respectively. The domestic PPGI offers are at $970-990/mt ex-works base versus $980-1,010/mt ex-works seen earlier. “Different levels might be seen now in the coated and cold-rolled markets as official offers are very distant from the actual workable prices,” a trader said.
In the retail flats market, several traders have opted to reduce their offers for hot-rolled sheets (HRS) by $40/mt to $750-780/mt ex-warehouse, depending on the supplier. "There has been a lack of demand for several weeks, but I believe there will be more interest in the domestic market soon because the Turkish holiday will slow business activities and keep prices stable for at least one week, and after the holiday it will be a little bit more active on the demand side," a trader told SteelOrbis. On the other hand, feasible prices for cold-rolled sheet settled around $820-940/mt ex-warehouse or $900-950/mt ex-warehouse during the past week.
