Steel plate market in Turkey has also felt the influence of the Chinese uptrend and, while some further uptrend might be possible in the near future, if it happens it will prevent prices in the Turkish market from falling. Although some restocking has been seen in the domestic plate market, imports have mainly remained silent.
According to sources, local producer Erdemir has increased its local plate offers for September production by $10-20/mt over the week to $650-690/mt ex-works base depending on the order. In the meantime, in the retail market offers have risen by $10-15/mt to $705-730/mt ex-warehouse. In addition, some market players reported there are traders’ offers for mixed shipbuilding grades at $770-790/mt ex-warehouse.
Import offers from Bulgaria have lost $10/mt over the week to $800/mt CFR officially, although buyers believe the workable price level should be closer to $750-760/mt CFR. Romania remains out of the market due to continuous production issues, while Macedonia is still offering €690/mt DAP for shipbuilding grades.
Asian offers have naturally increased in Turkey, with no takers seen yet. South Korean plate is now available mainly at $630-640/mt CFR, up from $615-625/mt CFR seen a week ago. Chinese plate prices have increased by around $20/mt to $610-620/mt CFR.
