Business activity in Turkey’s billet market has slowed down this week, following rather lively trade seen earlier, specifically in the local market. Currently, overseas suppliers are targeting even higher prices for Turkey, supported by the general market uptrend for billets and for scrap too. The domestic prices in Turkey have remained relatively stable, with only sporadic deals reported.
The number of domestic billet offers is scarce in Turkey as some suppliers are hesitating to sell due to increased production costs. In addition, a lot of buyers had already restocked earlier, especially in the Karabuk and the Iskenderun regions. A 10,000 mt deal is reported to have been closed at $695/mt CPT Marmara. In the Izmir region the official offer from one of the sellers is at $705/mt ex-works, while in the Iskenderun region the latest offers have been heard at $705-710/mt ex-works.
While domestic billet sales have been slow, some suppliers have decided to target exports, especially given the solid uptrend seen in the CIS segment. A 10,000 mt deal has been concluded at $703/mt FOB Iskenderun, which some sources report as being destined for Morocco. At the end of last week, there was talk about a sale of 15,000 mt at $750/mt CFR to El Salvador. Moreover, currently Latin America is still in the market for billet, in particular Colombia and the Dominican Republic.
Imports have been silent for billet in Turkey, mainly as CIS-based producers are targeting levels much higher than those the buyers are ready to pay. The highest offers have been heard at $710-720/mt CFR for April shipment from large mills, while rare bids have been at $685/mt CFR at the highest. Suppliers of small cargoes for February shipment seem to have decided to take a step back from the market this week, following the deals closed earlier at $667/mt CFR. The suppliers are expected to test offers at up to $690/mt CFR, given that some bids for prompt cargoes have increased to $675/mt CFR and that the general market trend is positive for now. Last week, the general import price for billet stood at $667-710/mt CFR depending on the supplier and lead time.