While the Turkish domestic wire rod market made a quiet start to the current week, an upward tendency in the market is being observed toward the end of the week in line with the US$/TRY exchange rate reaching levels of up to 1.42.
This week, local wire rod buyers in Turkey's Izmir region, who had difficulties in supplying their needs locally, preferred to buy wire rod from neighboring regions. Meanwhile, in Turkey's Iskenderun region, wire rod suppliers were unable to fill their order books for November with orders received from buyers in the same region; thus, it is heard that these buyers are now assessing wire rod price offers from the other regions within the country.
As regard Turkey's exports, in the context of shrinking demand in the international markets, Turkish mills have headed to the European market, given the further strengthening of the euro against the US dollar this week. As a result, it has been heard that a significant number of ex-Turkey wire rod export offers to Italy has been placed. Since demand for mesh quality wire rod is weak in the Italian domestic market, ex-Turkey offers to Italy were in general for drawing quality wire rod.
In the Saudi Arabian domestic market, planned and recently started construction projects have yet to revive demand to anticipated levels. It has been heard that local Saudi Arabian producer prices remain significantly higher as compared to import offers. Particularly, producers and traders from the UAE are making persistent offers to buyers in Saudi Arabia.
While remaining quiet this week, Ukraine is expected to clarify its wire rod export offers toward the end of the next week. Ex-Ukraine wire rod offers are awaited impatiently by buyers in the Romanian domestic market, as well as by other buyers of Ukrainian origin wire rod. Meanwhile, Romanian buyers think that domestic wire rod prices may be updated if Ukraine sets more competitive export offers.
There are some grounds for calling the current wire rod market a ‘buyers' market'. As wire rod suppliers try to place more pressure on wire rod buyers in the international market, more wire rod buyers postpone their bookings, as they consider there is an increasing possibility of a further softening of prices. And this situation results in a slowdown in the business cycle. Changes in the euro/dollar exchange rate and the general economic situation have also influenced the postponement of purchases.