A few Turkish longs suppliers have started the new week with downward price revisions for export destinations, following the rather sharp decrease seen in the most recent import scrap deal. Others are expected to follow this week, but for now they are trying to evaluate the market situation. Another issue is the high freight rates resulting from higher fuel prices and port congestion in China. Coupled with the costlier energy supply and generally insufficient foreign demand for longs, Turkish mills are mostly feeling under pressure.
Several exporters are offering rebar at $900/mt FOB for June shipments, while a week ago indicative offers at up to $940/mt FOB were also voiced. Limited rebar volumes are also available for May shipments, SteelOrbis understands. No fresh deals have been heard since the bids are mainly $20-30/mt lower than the offers. However, some suppliers may consider providing sizeable discounts for serious buyers with large orders.
In the Turkish domestic market, the official rebar prices in the Marmara and Izmir regions are at $900-910/mt ex-works, versus $930-940/mt ex-works a week ago. However, the workable levels in some regions are reported to be lower than those levels. According to sources, around 40,000 mt of rebar were sold last week at $880/mt ex-works Izmir.
In the wire rod segment, a few mills have decreased their wire rod export offers by $30/mt to $1,000/mt FOB, while a few mills have kept quoting $940/mt FOB Iskenderun for June shipment. A fresh ex-Turkey wire rod offer has been heard at around €945-950/mt ($1,015-1,020/mt) CFR Romania, with the freight estimated at around €50/mt depending on the port.