Business activity in Turkey’s hot rolled coil (HRC) market has as expected been limited in the first week of the year, partly taking into consideration the fact that CIS-based suppliers are out of the market until January 10. Aggressive ex-India offers are still being discussed in the market as a threatening factor to Turkish pricing. However, Turkish mills are not yet in a hurry to provide significant discounts.
Currently, according to sources, domestic prices for HRC in Turkey vary mainly within $815-830/mt ex-works, while official offers $10-20/mt higher are also present in the market. The allocation for February deliveries is limited and most producers are ready to sell for March. In the spot market, Turkish traders are currently offering hot rolled sheets at $900-940/mt ex-warehouse, while some official offers are heard at $10-20/mt higher.
In the import segment, latest HRC offers from India, mainly from traders, have been reported at $780-790/mt CFR with a 20,000 mt lot rumoured as having been closed at $770-780/mt CFR to a re-rolling company. However, some sources state that some of the first-tier Indian mills are back to $800-805/mt CFR in their official offers, probably after closing the sales to Turkey and Egypt which were reported by SteelOrbis earlier.
CIS-based suppliers are mainly out of the market due to the ongoing holiday period. The latest prices from Ukraine were at $800-810/mt CFR for February production, although some Turkish buyers believe the Ukrainian supplier would be under pressure to provide discounts closer to the ex-India levels. Russian mills have been evaluating the market conditions and available allocations for February. Some buyers expect the mills to announce around $800-815/mt CFR, while negotiations are set to begin next week, SteelOrbis understands.
