It is observed that CIS-based suppliers’ billet export prices have remained unchanged over the past week at $395-410/mt FOB. On the other hand, having received a lot of demand from Egypt, suppliers in the CIS region are seeking to increase their billet export prices with the support of the rises seen in scrap quotations.
Market sources report that ex-CIS billet sales to Egypt have been concluded at $420/mt CFR, while demand for ex-CIS billet in Egypt remains strong as the volume of domestic billet supply remains lower than domestic demand.
Meanwhile, Turkish steel producers still prefer to use scrap for their finished steel production as scrap provides a cost advantage and no commitment to export finished steel is required under Turkey’s inward processing regime for production with scrap. Turkish steel mills continue to conclude a lot of scrap deals and so their demand for ex-CIS billet is not expected to revive in the short term. It is observed that CIS-based billet suppliers have kept their billet offers to Turkey stable week on week at $410-430/mt CFR. On the other hand, domestic billet quotations in Turkey have started to move up, while it is thought that Turkish rolling mills will continue to conclude purchases of billet from the CIS only in line with their needs.