Trading activity in Turkey’s steel plate market has remained moderate over the past two weeks and suppliers are able to sell in small volumes, mainly to the industries and local service centers. The supply in the import market is somewhat limited due to maintenance works in South Korea and the summer vacation period in the EU. Prices have moved in different directions depending on mills’ sales positions. However, suppliers have avoided giving significant discounts due to the positivity in the hot rolled coil (HRC) segment and rebounding China.
Turkey’s Erdemir is offering at $820-840/mt ex-works for S235JR plate versus $800-850/mt ex-works seen two weeks ago. “Sales are moving and there are orders, but financial and economic issues still remain a problem for normal consumption,” a trader told SteelOrbis.
Import offers have not moved much over the past fortnight and suppliers have made only relatively minor adjustments. Bulgaria’s price has softened by $10/mt to $850/mt CFR for September loading, while Romania has remained at $850-860/mt CFR level for the same loading term.
Asian suppliers are also present, though there is not much interest from the Turkish side. South Korea is offering plate for October-November loading at $820/mt CFR, $20/mt higher than the previous level. In the meantime, China is offering at $680/mt CFR, up $10/mt over the past two weeks.