While deep sea scrap trading during the SteelOrbis Spring 2026 Conference & 94th IREPAS Meeting held in Amsterdam on April 26-28 was almost stagnant, deals done earlier this week have surfaced in the market.
SteelOrbis has learned that an ex-Sweden deal was closed by a Marmara-based Turkish steel producer for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $410/mt CFR and for shredded and bonus grades at $430/mt CFR. Another ex-St. Petersburg deal was closed by another Marmara-based mill for HMS I/II 80:20 at $407/mt CFR, for prompt shipment. As a result, SteelOrbis’ reference prices for ex-Baltic scrap have increased by $0.5/mt. The level of $410/mt CFR is similar to the price in the previous ex-US scrap booking done before the conference. A slow uptrend is expected in Turkey’s import scrap segment in the next round of purchases.
A major ex-US scrap supplier told SteelOrbis that their next price target is $415/mt CFR Turkey, with prices lower than this not expected. Deep sea freight is once again moving up and exerting upward pressure on suppliers’ prices, amid Turkish mills’ reluctance to accept the new levels. SteelOrbis observes that Turkish mills have concerns regarding the current price levels, stating that their finished steel sales have not recovered significantly. As SteelOrbis reported yesterday, April 29, overseas buyers are not ready to pay higher prices for rebar and are insisting on additional discounts, not leaving room for any upward price push. As a result, even though import scrap prices have increased, Turkish mills are so far not able to reflect the higher costs in their export prices. The official Turkish rebar export prices for May shipment are at $595-615/mt FOB, down by $5/mt from a week ago. In the local Turkish market, most Marmara-based mills are officially offering at $610-620/mt ex-works, unchanged from last week’s levels. Additional discounts are only applicable for high tonnages and cash payment. According to Reuters, “Oil prices surged over six percent on Wednesday to settle at their highest in weeks, as deadlocked U.S.-Iran negotiations made investors more concerned about prolonged disruptions to Middle Eastern supply.” A source from a major Turkish mill commented, “We see there are reasons for scrap prices to move up, but, if we fail to convince the end-users to accept our price increases, there are little-to-no margins for mills.”
After the recent ex-Baltic scrap deals, SteelOrbis has revised its ex-UK/EU scrap prices to $403-405/mt CFR and its ex-US scrap prices to $411-412/mt CFR. Deep sea and short sea scrap prices are expected to remain firm during the next round of bookings.
