Turkish buyers' import prices for 304 2B stainless steel cold rolled coil (CRC) of 2 mm in thickness from the Far East are standing at the range of $2,800-2,900/mt CFR Turkey. In the Turkish domestic market in the meantime, traders' prices for similar materials are at $3,200-3,300/mt ex-warehouse, though it is reported that buyers other than large-scale steel service centers and stockists are abstaining from increasing their inventory levels. Market conditions and producers' prices as well as nickel and chrome prices have been very volatile recently. Thus, buyers consider it very risky to purchase materials in larger tonnages and they prefer to trade material with limited margins instead.
Nickel prices at the London Metal Exchange (LME) closed yesterday, May 9, at $17,030/mt for cash settlements and at $17,075/mt for three-month settlement. Nickel prices on the LME have dropped by about $300/mt week on week.
As SteelOrbis previously reported, in March this year Turkey's stainless flat steel imports rose by 11.9 percent compared to the previous month and were down 13.4 percent compared to March 2011, amounting to 31,596 metric tons, according to the data provided by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK). Meanwhile, in the first quarter of the current year Turkey's stainless flat steel imports amounted to 91,697 metric tons, increasing 0.6 percent compared to the corresponding period of 2011.