Over the past week, demand in the local Turkish pre-painted galvanized iron (PPGI) market has remained slack, while prices have continued their downward movement, declining by $5/mt week on week. Although the declines in global flat steel prices have ended, Turkish buyers have continued to exert pressure on domestic PPGI prices and have maintained their cautious stance by making bookings only to meet their immediate needs. Market sources state that the current situation in the market is unlikely to undergo a recovery in the short term as buyers are trying to keep their inventories as low as possible due to the negative economic situation in Turkey and as demand is being negatively impacted by the cash and credit problems in the country.
Turkish producers' domestic PPGI prices are now at $875-905/mt for RAL 9002 0.3 mm 100 gr/m² zinc-coated PPGI, at $715-745/mt for RAL 9002 0.5 mm PPGI and at $610-650/mt for RAL 9002 1 mm PPGI. All the offers in question are on ex-works basis and exclude 18 percent VAT.
In the same period, Turkish PPGI export quotations have decreased by $5/mt to $715-735/mt FOB, while it is observed that buyers in the global market have continued to make inquiries for Turkish PPGI. However, these inquiries have not resulted in actual transactions and, in particular, demand for Turkish PPGI in Europe has remained slack due to the European Commission’s new quotas.