Turkey’s HRC prices have been moving unevenly this week, reflecting different trends depending on the factors influencing each segment. In the local market, the mills have preferred to keep the official offers stable, with some discounts possible for serious buyers, but the discounts are not expected to lead to significant demand. In the EU, where demand is still seen ahead of the holidays, the workable prices from Turkey are down over the week with mills seeking to get orders with complicated breakdowns. Import HRC offers, particularly from China, have moved up significantly, reflecting the higher futures prices related to the most recently announced production cuts.
Domestic HRC prices for August deliveries in Turkey are still at $540-550/mt ex-works base, stable from last week since it is believed that big discounts will not trigger additional demand but will only cause buyers to delay restocking further. Sources believe that for large lots and for orders with good extras it is possible to achieve $533-545/mt ex-works/CFR Marmara.
As regards exports of Turkish HRC, there is more of price dynamic seen. The official level of offers is still at $530-540/mt FOB base for August shipments. However, lower prices are also granted depending on the customer, order size and the breakdown. According to sources, some deals to the EU were closed last week at $520-525/mt FOB and slightly above, while this week the levels of $515-520/mt FOB seem to be on the table. Moreover, according to market information from both supplying and buying sides, levels of $500-510/mt FOB base may also be workable particularly for orders for good volumes with sizeable extras.
Given the most recent developments in China and the related rise in futures prices, the price idea for HRC for the Turkish market is not so clear at present, with the highest level evaluated at $480-484/mt CFR for August shipment. In the meantime, non-VAT offers are evaluated at $465-468/mt CFR. However, the levels are set to become clearer by the end of the week. Since domestic HRC prices in Turkey are stable to down, higher import offers from China will hardly gain any acceptance. HRC offers from Egypt have been reported at $535-540/mt CFR for August shipments with around 20,000-25,000 mt in total booked. Some sources say the deals were in the mentioned range, while some report they were at $535-537/mt CFR and slightly below. Latest indications from Malaysia have been reported at $535/mt CFR for August shipments.