The billet market in Turkey is showing uneven price trends depending on the segment since domestic offers have been strong, based on recent higher-priced sales and relatively firm rebar prices. Moreover, some mills are targeting even higher local billet price levels next week. In the meantime, China has once again reduced offers for December shipments, while the other billet suppliers to Turkey, including other Asian and Black-Sea based suppliers, have either maintained their offers unchanged or attempted a slight increase.
The latest square billet offers from China to Turkey have been set at $457-462/mt CFR depending on the seller, down from $460-465/mt CFR earlier this week, with buyers’ prices ideas not exceeding $450-455/mt CFR levels. “This [price] should be quite competitive versus Turkish domestic production at $500-505/mt based on the latest scrap deals. Some billet deals might be seen shortly,” a source said. Moreover, some sources report that a 50,000 mt sale has been concluded at $457/mt CFR Iskenderun this week. An ex-Malaysia billet cargo of 18,000 mt, which had been on offer for mid-November shipments, according to sources, has been sold this week at $488/mt CFR Iskenderun, versus the earlier deals to the same region at $484/mt CFR. Ex-Indonesia indications are at $470/mt CFR still, but are unworkable in Turkey. Moreover, the supplier has preferred to trade to alternative, nearer destinations.
As SteelOrbis reported earlier this week, the latest deals for billet from Russia were concluded at $455-460/mt CFR for over 50,000 mt for October-November shipments. The new offers have been increased to $465/mt CFR as the suppliers are aiming to take advantage of limited availability and close proximity.
Ex-Ukraine offers for December billet are still at $500/mt CFR indicatively from one mill, while another supplier remains out of the market for now.
Local billet prices in Turkey have settled at $510-515/mt ex-works across Turkey with the latest bookings closed in the Iskenderun region at the upper end of the range, while in the middle of the week Kardemir traded around 60,000 mt of billet at $500-510/mt ex-works depending on the grade. Billet prices domestically are supported by relatively strong scrap prices and somewhat firm rebar prices, while daily long steel trade is continuing, though for limited volumes.
Export offers for billet from Turkey are at $510/mt FOB for December shipments, with North African buyers being targeted.