Merchant bar prices in Turkey keep softening in line with sluggish demand

In the Turkish domestic merchant bar market this year, prices had trended upwards until the third week of the year, as can be seen from the SteelOrbis Steel Reference Prices; however, by the third week prices started to soften and have continued this trend up to now. Last week, domestic angle prices were standing at TRY 1,115-1,160/mt ($700-729/mt) + VAT ex-works, and this week this price range has declined to TRY 1,110-1,150/mt ($697-722/mt) + VAT ex-works.
 
Market sources indicate that the price softening is driven by continuing sluggish demand and also by the ongoing quietness in the construction industry caused by adverse weather conditions. For now, Turkish merchant bar buyers are only purchasing what they need. The stagnation in the merchant bar market is expected to continue in the coming days. However, by the middle of March, demand is foreseen to show some recovery with the acceleration of construction projects.
 
On Turkey's export side, towards the middle of last week, with support from strong steel billet prices, Turkish mills tested the offer price level of $725-735/mt FOB for angle exports to be delivered in March. However, since demand is tepid in Turkey's export markets and also with buyers remaining cautious towards this offer level, this week angle export offers from Turkey have declined to $720-730/mt FOB. Meanwhile, SteelOrbis has learned that lower offers are also available in the market.
 
This week, some low volume merchant bar sales have been concluded from Turkey to West and Central Africa. However, buyers in Turkey's other export markets are currently adopting a wait-and-see stance.
 
$1 = TRY 1.592