This week, despite Turkish flat steel spot prices remaining largely unchanged in the domestic market, demand has continued to weaken as the year-end approaches. Market participants reported limited buying activity, with many end users postponing purchases amid year-end budget closures and subdued downstream demand. While overall price stability has been supported by steady hot rolled coil (HRC) and scrap prices, some traders, aware of the increasingly sluggish outlook, have sought to stimulate demand by offering discounts to serious buyers, particularly for larger volume purchases.
“There has been no movement in spot prices, as the market has already shifted into year-end mode and trading activity is extremely limited,” a trader told SteelOrbis.
In the domestic market, hot rolled sheet (HRS) prices have stayed within the $580-600/mt ex-warehouse range, showing no change from the previous week. While major producers have largely kept their prices firm, smaller and mid-sized sellers have been more flexible in order to attract buyers. In this weak demand environment, discounts of around $5-10/mt have been available, especially for larger-volume purchases.
The cold rolled sheet (CRS) market has also remained unchanged, with offer prices holding at $660-710/mt ex-warehouse, in line with last week.