Even though sentiment in Turkey’s flat steel market before the recent holiday had been rather negative and many buyers believed further discounts would be granted, prices from local producers and re-rollers seem to have stabilized, at least for now. One reason is that China is not so aggressive now, while import scrap prices have also remained stable. In addition, some players believe that prices in the EU will hit the bottom soon and that import demand in this destination may revive.
Currently, the domestic hot rolled coil (HRC) offers in Turkey are at $630-645/mt ex-works base for end-of-May deliveries, in line with the official pre-holiday levels. However, while previously $620/mt ex-works/CFR Marmara was considered workable by some producers, this possibility seems to be off the table for now. As regards exports, official offers are at $605-620/mt FOB and above depending on the buyer and the tonnage. However, below $600/mt FOB is considered possible for large lots.
In the import segment, ex-China offers have also not changed much since before the holiday and are now standing at $555-560/mt CFR for end-of-May shipments, for Q195 grade of 3 mm and higher. No new deals have been reported for now.
In the meantime, Turkey’s cold rolled coil (CRC) prices seem to have stabilized at $780-800/mt for both domestic and export markets, although for exports slightly lower levels are considered possible. The domestic hot dip galvanized prices are still at around $800-830/mt and up to $850/mt ex-works for Z60-70 material, while for exports Z100 coils are at $770-810/mt FOB, almost unchanged over the past fortnight. In the domestic market, HDG Z100 prices are at $850-870/mt ex-works, still with some discounts applicable, SteelOrbis understands. Turkey’s pre-painted galvanized iron (PPGI) prices have mainly increased over the mentioned period, to $970-1,000/mt both on ex-works and FOB basis. It is worth mentioning that currently some re-rollers are keeping PPGI offers at high levels and are concentrating on their HDG sales, while others admit $20-30/mt discounts may be possible for PPGI despite the rebound in official offers, depending on the tonnage and sales destination.
