CIS-based billet exporters have started to withdraw offers to Turkey from yesterday, July 13, when low-priced deals for imported scrap in Turkey were reported.
Early this week, offers from some large mills were voiced at $650-655/mt FOB Black Sea, up by $5/mt from last week. Better sentiment was seen in the market amid relatively tight availability and positive signs from the Asian market. But starting from Tuesday, the mood in the CIS billet export market has worsened again and the tradable level for big mills has been assessed at $640-645/mt FOB. “Scrap is down and the situation in Turkey post-holidays is unclear,” one market source said.
At the moment, the workable level in Turkey will hardly be above $670/mt CFR, which corresponds to $640/mt FOB on average, taking into account increased freights.
“Scrap prices decreased by not more than $10/mt, and billet prices may adjust accordingly, but I don’t see any possibility of a sharp drop,” a supplier source said.
Demand for ex-CIS billet has been weak and most buyers have been waiting for a clearer direction before new negotiations. Some rare bids have been heard at the low level of $630/mt FOB and below.
In other export sales destinations apart from Turkey, trading has also been weak. But China has been accelerating purchases. In particular, slightly less than 20,000 mt billet from Russia’s Far East have been traded to China this week at $707/mt CFR. This price level corresponds to $637-647/mt FOB Black Sea for a large cargo, though the freight rates are changing rapidly now.
The SteelOrbis reference price for ex-CIS billet has been settled at $640/mt FOB, down by $5-10/mt from yesterday and stable on average from late last week.