It is observed that Turkish steel mills have kept their
rebar export offers stable during the past week at $450-490/mt FOB on actual weight basis, as the upward movement of import scrap prices for
Turkey has come to an end. Buyers in the international markets consider last week's rises in Turkish
rebar export quotations to be on the high side. As a result, demand for Turkish
rebar in target markets has failed to improve week on week and is still at low levels.
Following the US Department of Commerce's announcement of the preliminary decision in the antidumping (AD) case against Turkish
rebar imports at the beginning of March, Turkish steel mills have concluded
rebar sales to the US for the first time in a long while. Last week Turkish steel producers'
rebar offers to the US were at $525-530/mt CFR on theoretical weight basis, while at the beginning of the current week Turkish steel producers concluded
rebar sales to this destination at $455-460/mt FOB on actual weight basis, excluding AD margins. Although actual sales were concluded at lower levels than the initial offer prices, it is observed that Turkish steelmakers cannot reduce their
rebar export offers due to their current production costs. As a result, Turkish mills'
rebar offers to the US are still at $525-530/mt CFR on theoretical weight basis. On the other hand, US-based buyers are reportedly putting pressure on Turkish
rebar offers.
Demand in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where Turkish mills usually sell higher tonnages, has not improved during the past week. Since there is currently no demand for Turkish
rebar in the UAE, Turkish steel producers have not determined a price strategy for this market.
For the first time in years, Turkish producers achieved a price advantage in the Far East at the end of 2016 and concluded
rebar sales to the region. Far Eastern buyers continue to make price inquiries for Turkish billet and
rebar. On the other hand, they currently prefer to wait and see and gain a clearer of the market against the backdrop of fluctuations in Chinese billet and
rebar quotations. As a result, Far Eastern buyers are in no rush to conclude new purchases of Turkish
rebar. Meanwhile, Turkish steel producers' most recent
rebar sale to the region was to Singapore two weeks ago at $455/mt CFR on theoretical weight basis.
Following the AD investigation for Turkish
rebar and wire rod in Egypt initiated at the end of December, demand for Turkish
rebar in this market had come to a halt. Since the uncertainties resulting from the AD investigation continue, demand for Turkish
rebar in Egypt has remained weak and no new Turkish
rebar deals have been concluded to the country over the past week.