As the month of May comes to an end, a new ex-UK deal has been heard in the import scrap market in Turkey, with prices inching up.
SteelOrbis has learned that an Iskenderun-based Turkish mill has concluded an ex-UK transaction for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $252.5/mt CFR, shredded scrap at $257.5/mt CFR and bonus grade scrap at $262.5/mt CFR. The cargo in question is 42,000 mt in total. This information has not been confirmed by the buyer or seller by the time of publication, though market players widely believe that the deal was done. In the ex-UK booking previous to this one which was disclosed to the market on May 25, the HMS I/II 80:20 scrap quotation was at $247/mt CFR.
Market sources surveyed by SteelOrbis state that there are still five to seven deep sea cargoes offered to Turkey. As Turkish mills have already concluded more transactions for June shipment to compensate for the insufficient number of cargoes from May shipment, buyers are in no rush to conclude further deals and there is only room for a few more cargoes for June shipment, according to market sources. Scrap suppliers have not succeeded in reducing their own scrap collection costs, which have thus remained stable. Also, for now, expectations in the local US scrap market have improved regarding prices for the June buy-cycle. Turkish mills are expected to make a slow start to June, as they seek to evaluate the market situation and the impact of the easing of the measures aimed at limiting the spread of the Covid-19 virus.