A subdued business activity has been overall maintained in the Turkish billet market since despite lower import offers from China the buyers are still not feeling themselves in a position to risk buying for November deliveries and in the huge lots. Still, the bids for Asian material are rare and at the levels, not acceptable for the suppliers, at least at the moment. Some limited demand is still seen for ex-Ukraine billet due to shorter delivery term. Ex-Russia and ex-Donbass billet are also potentially of a certain interest for the buyers but for now the bids are not quite matching the sellers’ price ideas. Sliding rebar amid slack domestic and export demand is another reason for the limited interest in billet.
Currently, ex-China billet for October shipments is offered to Turkey at $478-480/mt CFR, down from $485/mt CFR on average, officially offered last week. According to some sources, there have been some traders going short at $473/mt CFR with no deals closed. Overall, the buyers’ prices idea, though they have been mainly “fishing” lately, has been not exceeding $460-465/mt CFR, SteelOrbis has learned. Ex-Indonesia is in the market for November shipments which is too long of a lead time for Turkey with the offers evaluated at $484-486/mt CFR including extras for high manganese billet. Malaysian billet indications for October shipments have been mainly reported at $495/mt CFR versus the alleged bids at $475-480/mt CFR, which is not feasible for the sellers. Aside from Asia there has been another 10,000 mt sale from Ukraine to Turkey at slightly below $490/mt CFR. Currently, ex-Ukraine allocation for Turkey is limited.
Most Russian billet exporters have been targeting $450/mt FOB for shipment in October, but this price has been not acceptable in most major outlets like Turkey and North Africa. “Turks still do not want to pay above $460-462/mt CFR and only for September shipment,” a trader said. These bids correspond to $440/mt FOB for medium and large volumes and down to $435-437/mt FOB Black Sea for small ones. In Egypt, the tradable price levels are higher, but buyers still consider buying only for a short delivery terms or material already at ports. In particular, there have been talks about sales for Russian billet from port at $490-495/mt CFR. Offers for Chinese billets for October shipment in Egypt can be as low as $478-480/mt CFR, so it is around $10/mt lower compared to targeted levels by Russians for October shipment.
The SteelOrbis reference price for ex-Russia billet has been at $437-442/mt FOB Black Sea with the midpoint at $439.5/mt FOB, moving slightly down by $1.5/mt over the week.