Trading activity in Turkey’s square billet market has been extremely low this week with hardly any serious negotiation going on in the import segment in particular. The stalled import scrap segment and the limited gap between the billet and rebar prices in Turkey have been the main reasons for the low trade in the semis segment.
In addition, in the local market in Turkey, Karabuk region-based Kardemir has sold up to 60,000 mt of billet at around $685/mt ex-works, which is considered to be a low price at the moment. As a result, billet importers from this region have taken a step back from import negotiations since ex-CIS prices have even inched up by $5-10/mt over the past week to $670-700/mt CFR depending on the seller and the volume.
Turkish suppliers in other regions are mainly voicing $700/mt ex-works. Last week, in the Izmir area the price was reportedly fixed in a deal for a small lot. Early this week, according to sources, a small lot of billet was traded at $690/mt ex-works, with the latest rumor stating that around 30,000 mt were sold on June 17 without any price disclosed.
“There has to be a move either on the billet or rebar side since the gap is not that big and, if the big boys are more or less comfortable due to exports, local rebar re-rollers, who do not sell abroad, are considerably squeezed,” a source told SteelOrbis.