Turkish merchant bar re-rollers attempt to raise their export offers

In the past two weeks, Turkish merchant bar export prices for equal angles have risen by $5/mt on the lower end and are down by $10/mt on the higher end to $660-675/mt FOB. Ex-Turkey merchant bar prices are expected to be revised by the beginning of next week amid stronger scrap prices and livelier demand. “Merchant bar enquiries are being received from Morroccan and Tunisian buyers in North Africa, while Algerian buyers are out of the market for now,” a source mentioned.  Most Turkish merchant bar re-rollers are mainly offering for April shipments, while a few re-rollers are offering for extended delivery terms.

Turkey has already filled its EU quota opened in January for merchant bars, while utilizing 58 percent of its EU quota for big-size beams (80 mm and above) for now. Accordingly, Turkish merchant bar re-rollers are negotiating ex-EU inquiries for the second quota period which starts on April 1. Latin America is also a key destination for merchant bar exports. According to sources, Yemeni buyers are also active in the merchant bar market due to their recent rebar purchases for April shipment, seeking to fill up their cargoes with small tonnages of merchant bars as well.

Turkish merchant bar export prices are currently at the following levels:

All prices are on FOB basis and for April shipment.