Turkish mills are attempting to keep their longs export prices stable, while international buyers are exerting pressure for additional discounts due to the negative sentiment in the import scrap segment. A few mills are aggressive in their pricing strategies in order to generate sales and are giving sizeable discounts both for domestic and export rebar sales. However, most buyers are postponing their purchases to see if longs prices will fall further. As a result, even though the holiday period in China and the US is over, the situation is still unclear as regards export sales, while the Turkish central bank is due to announce its decision on interest rates this week. Most local customers are also struggling with financial difficulties and are having trouble with credit issues and so they have been buying less steel.
Currently, ex-Turkey official rebar offers are available at $610-620/mt FOB for shipments in March and early April, stable over the past week. However, when the latest rumors regarding rebar deals are taken into account, the workable rebar export prices are slightly below $610/mt FOB.
According to a statement from the Mediterranean Ferrous and Non-Ferrous Metals/Steel Exporters’ Association (ADMIB), Turkey has made a positive start to 2024 with a 3.6 percent increase in exports in January. In the first month of the year, the iron and steel industry constituted 10.3 percent of the country's total exports. Turkey seems to be strongly focused on exports to nearby countries and the Middle East.
In the Turkish domestic rebar market, the official price range in the Marmara and Izmir regions stands at $625-640/mt, down by $10/mt on the lower end from a week ago. Sources report that the workable rebar price is at $615-630/mt ex-works for serious buyers only.
In the wire rod export segment, the offer levels are at $625-635/mt FOB for shipment in March and early April, down by $5/mt on the lower end from a week ago. The local wire rod prices are relatively higher at $635-665/mt ex-works, stable from a week ago, while Kardemir has issued its 6-27 mm SAE 1008-1010 grade wire rod price at $635/mt ex-works today, which seems quite workable under the current market conditions.
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