Silence continues to prevail in Turkey’s billet market, specifically in its import segment. Despite a certain rebound seen in the import scrap segment, the upward mood which still exists among CIS-based suppliers remains restricted by the low demand and prices for Turkish rebar. As a result, in the local billet market in Turkey deals are occasional, while no transactions have been reported for imports, taking into account that buyers’ and sellers’ prices are quite distant from each other.
An Iskenderun region-based steel producer has recently sold 13,000 mt of billet to the local market at $580/mt ex-works. A buyer in the Marmara region has reportedly booked a billet cargo in the domestic market at $608/mt CFR, with an estimated freight of around $12-15/mt. In the northern part of Turkey, the market awaits Kardemir’s announcement of its new sales and the price will largely determine import offers as well. “It is tough to price [billet] nowadays. There is a willingness to push it up, but this is not easy taking into account the rebar market situation,” a trader told SteelOrbis.
In the import segment, there is a lack of solid offers for ex-CIS billet. Some mills have been offering $585/mt CFR Iskenderun, while similar offers have been reported to the northern part of Turkey from traders. However, Turkish buyers are scarcely expected to pay far above $570/mt CFR, with the freight estimated at $25-30/mt as of today. It is worth mentioning that CIS-based producers may choose to sell large lots to China, where they can achieve FOB levels similar to the ones workable in Turkey, but for smaller batches. Still, there are hopes for a further rebound in the scrap segment, which may help support the pricing for longs and billet in Turkey.