Foreign suppliers anxious to sell off their hot rolled coil (HRC) volumes have come to the Turkish market with lower prices, thus disturbing the business of local Turkish mills. The CIS and India-based mills have dropped their prices by at least $20-30/mt over the past week and some of them have managed to conclude deals.
According to sources, around 20,000-25,000 mt of HRC ex-India were sold to a Turkish re-roller, while the offers have been standing at $915-925/mt CFR, down from $940-950/mt CFR a week earlier. The HRC offers from the CIS have dropped by $15/mt from Ukraine to $905-920/mt CFR depending on the coil weight and have fallen by $30/mt from Russia to $920/mt CFR as an opening price. “I think the CIS can give $900/mt CFR today according to their costs, but buyers are pushing for $10-20/mt lower,” a large buyer told SteelOrbis.
As a result, domestic HRC prices in Turkey are under pressure and the levels of $950-975/mt ex-works which were only rumoured and whispered last week have now become the reality. Still, some mills are officially offering at $1,000/mt ex-works and above, specifically for prompt orders, while there are rumours of sales at $930/mt ex-works by one of the mills.
Generally, the mood in the Turkish HRC market is far from optimistic and most players agree prices will see a significant downturn. “CRC and coated are not good at all and stocks have been piling up here. We have now close to 2 million mt of flats sitting on the ground,” a producer said.
