Import slab business has been relatively challenging in Turkey lately, taking into account that more buyers seem to be hesitant to deal for ex-Russia material, even though some of the Russian sellers are not under sanctions. In the meantime, preference has been given to steel slab of other origins, particularly South Korea, which has been offering with a plentiful allocation due to the recent accident affecting production in the country.
According to sources, around 70,000 mt of steel slab from South Korea have recently been booked to Turkey at $550/mt CFR, versus $560/mt CFR in the initial offers. Market players note that only a couple of buyers could have bought the South Korean slab since its size is not less than 250 mm. “In Turkey, you can either use it for plate production or in the case when you have more than one reheating furnace, because if there is one, you just lose productivity,” a s market source told SteelOrbis.
In addition, there has been talk about slab sales to Turkey from Saudi Arabia at around $530-535/mt CFR, while the initial offers were at $550-560/mt CFR. However, the information about the deals has not been confirmed by the time of publication. Some sources report that even $520/mt CFR has been voiced in bids for slab from Saudi Arabia.
Russia has also been partly in the market with one of the suppliers offering $490/mt CFR, down from the latest deals of $510-515/mt CFR. “The price for Russia has to be $440-450/mt CFR at most as it is getting dangerous to sell coated and CRC made from Russian slab to the US and the EU,” a producer said.
