Rebar export business remains challenging for the Turkish mills as, along with the limited demand, there is a negative effect from the tough financial situation in the country, while the production costs are still relatively high. Import scrap prices have been also firm, therefore the official rebar prices from Turkey have weakened only slightly for now.
Ex-Turkish rebar offers are mostly standing at $735-740/mt FOB versus $740-750/mt FOB seen last week, while only a few suppliers are keeping their rebar offers at $10/mt higher levels for late December-January shipments. No fresh rebar sales have been heard for now. The reopening of the Egyptian market has brought some optimism, although a more positive impact is expected for the billet segment as compared to the rebar one. In particular, there is still a valid antidumping decision against the Turkish mills and the rates vary within 7-22.8 percent depending on the mill. In addition, the each foreign supplier of rebar to Egypt has to be registered by the competent local authorities. Current local rebar prices in Egypt are at around $820-850/mt ex-works, SteelOrbis has learned.
In the Turkish domestic rebar market, the general rebar price range still varies at $745-750/mt ex-works. Only small dollar-based discount is applicable for serious buyers. It is also worth mentioning that Turkish Central Bank has cut its interest rate to 15 percent today, which will once again result in currency fluctuations.
In the wire rod export segment, a few Turkish mills have kept their offers at $840/mt FOB stable week on week, for January shipment. Latin America is the key destination for wire rod export. According to sources, a 8,000 mt wire rod cargo and another 12,000-13,000 mt lot of 5.5 mm low carbon grade were traded at $840/mt FOB Turkey to Chile and Colombia last week, both for February shipments.