Rapid price hikes in the import scrap segment have urged Turkey-based rebar producers to continuously increase their domestic and export offers. Moreover, the scrap uptrend is expected to continue, further supporting prices for longs. For now, the key support is coming from local rebar demand, sources say, as traders are restocking rather actively, fearing further price rises.
Turkish rebar export prices are available at $735-750/mt FOB for late November-December shipments today, versus $700-720/mt FOB seen earlier this week. The higher end seems a bit difficult to achieve for now. A fresh 25,000-30,000 mt rebar cargo is rumored to have been sold to Canada at $690-700/mt theoretical weight basis for February shipment, with most people believing this was achievable.
It is worth mentioning that there are some discussions in the market about whether it is possible for Turkey to get some rebar offers from China. Most sources state that, even if the prices would match up, there are still some issues that may prevent trade to this destination. One is that China seems to require 0.3 copper content, while Turkish mills normally have 0.6 percent or slightly below in their long steel. “Sure they can use scrap with low copper content like that from Russia and increase the share of pig iron and HBI where there is no copper. But it will increase the production costs and may not be worth the hassle,” a trader told SteelOrbis. In addition, some sources suggest that Turkey will be restricted by certain certification requirements, which are normally used to restrict import rebar usage in the local markets, similar to the British Standard which is connected with the CARES certification system.
In the Turkish domestic rebar market, mills in the Izmir and Marmara regions are currently officially offering rebar at around $730-750/mt ex-work, up $30/mt since earlier this week. According to sources, one Izmir-based mill has succeeded in selling around 11,000 mt of rebar at $720/mt ex-works recently. Earlier this week, around 30,000 mt were sold at $700-705/mt ex-works and 5,000-10,000 mt were traded at $710/mt ex-works, again both in the Izmir region. In Marmara, some mills have been able to achieve $740/mt ex-works for sales of small lots. “The total rebar tonnage sold may be far above 50,000 mt, but it has not been revealed to the market yet,” a source mentioned. Most market players note that demand is currently good in the local market as traders have been actively restocking. As a result, the mills have strong support for now and can relax a bit as regards exports, SteelOrbis understands.
In the wire rod segment, a few Turkish mills are offering at $850/mt, versus $800-820/mt FOB earlier this week, for December-early January shipments. However, some mills have stopped quoting amid the rapid import scrap price hike. No fresh wire rod sales have been heard for now.