Flats prices in Turkey have stabilized as the year nears its end and most of the players prefer to take a wait and see stance amid many market uncertainties. The expectations to see clearer US trade policies and trends in the Chinese market make most buyers postpone their purchases. Moreover, in HRC segment some restocking had been done over the past couple of weeks, therefore the customers are not under much pressure.
China’s Q195 3 mm and up prices are at $503-508/mt CFR this week, down from $505-515/mt CFR seen previously, the cargoes are for February shipments. However, according to some customers, the lower end of the range is offered for early March shipments. “Lead time for Chinese [HRC] is too long, especially since there might be a price change over Chinese New Year so there is not much point to buy now,” a trader told SteelOrbis. In addition, as was reported earlier, some of Turkish buyers had restocked Russian non-sanctioned material at around $535-540/mt CFR.
Local HRC in Turkey is still mainly at $560-570/mt ex-works as per realistic level of offers, although small volumes are also reportedly offered at $580-585/mt ex-works. However, the levels of $550-555/mt ex-works have been also heard in the market as a possible level for medium and large lots. Still, since it seems that the discounts are unlikely to trigger much demand nowadays, mills prefer maintaining their prices for now.
In the CRС and coated steel segment the prices are also stable over the week. Local CRC is available at $690-710/mt ex-works, although most of the offers are at the lower end of the range. The domestic HDG and PPGI base prices are at $770-800/mt ex-works and $920-940/mt ex-works, respectively, with some discounts available depending on the supplier.
