Turkey’s hot rolled coil buyers have commenced stock replenishment and have decided to purchase some lots on the import side, along with minor bookings in the domestic market. Asian suppliers, mainly China, have remained the most active in the Turkish market.
According to sources, Turkish re-rollers booked at least 20,000 mt of HRC from China at the end of the past week at $570/mt CFR, although the level of $565/mt CFR has also been considered workable. “It was on the table but maybe someone booked at a higher price, though for a quicker delivery,” a source told SteelOrbis. The current offers are mainly at $580/mt CFR, for November shipments.
In addition, market sources have reported that deals for around 20,000-30,000 mt have been recently booked from Japan for November delivery. The exact price of the deals has not been fully clarified, but most market players mention a prices at the $600/mt CFR effective level, which is around $580/mt CFR base. The initial HRC offers of the past week from Japan stood at $605/mt CFR effective.
The most recent offers from South Korea have been reported at $585-590/mt CFR for November shipments and $5/mt discounts are considered possible. Sources believe the suppliers would target selling to the automotive sector rather to the commercial segment, similar to the previous rounds of sales.
In the domestic market, Turkey’s producers are at $650-690/mt ex-works for October-November HRC deliveries and some deals have been closed at the lower end of the range. Some negotiations still begin at $700/mt ex-works, but even for industries and for closer lead times $680-685/mt ex-works levels are considered to be the maximum workable levels. In the export segment, most indications for the EU are at around $640-650/mt FOB, versus around $610-620/mt FOB voiced by rare buyers. Non-EU destinations, according to traders, may still count on around $615-625/mt FOB levels.