Turkey’s HDG prices fall below $600/mt

After the sharp price decrease in the Turkish domestic and import hot rolled coil prices (HRC) segments, local coated steel producers have had not much choice but to decrease their offers by $40-50/mt since last week.

Demand has remained dreadful in the country due to the interruptions in end-users' production activities. Although the price decrease for coated steel has already been sizeable enough, additional discounts are still possible for real buyers because of the low trade and high stock levels in the market. The export market is no different. 

Demand remains low and prices have decreased by $40/mt since last week. “We will be flexible on prices as long as HRC prices allow us. Our main problem is of course demand, but we cannot offer our material below production cost. Some buyers - both in the local and export markets - are exerting extreme pressure on prices in this period, but our price policy has to be created according to HRC prices,” a re-roller told SteelOrbis. In such a situation, Turkish re-rollers have been forced to slow down their production. According to sources, each of them has at least one coating line temporarily suspended and none is working at full capacity.

Many end-users are hoping to restart their production at the end of April, according to their official statements. But they also declare that they may revise their production plans accordingly to the situation in the global markets, particularly in Europe. “If European automotive companies decide to extend their closure, we have to follow because we work mainly for export”, an end-user told SteelOrbis.