A deal from early this week has been disclosed to the market today, October 1, indicating a decrease in the ex-Baltic benchmark HMS I/II 80:20 scrap price.
A Marmara-based mill concluded the transaction from Sweden at the beginning of the current week for 14,000 mt of HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $292/mt CFR, 12,000 mt of shredded scrap at $297/mt CFR and 10,000 mt of bonus grade scrap at $302/mt CFR. The most recent ex-Baltic deals were from Denmark and Finland, and were closed at $296/mt CFR Turkey for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap.
It is now clear that import scrap quotations in Turkey are moving down. Market sources believe that prices may decrease to $285-290/mt CFR Turkey for prime grades. Some have even said it may be possible to see quotations closer to $280/mt CFR in the coming round of scrap deals. The absence of Turkish mills has successfully exerted pressure on suppliers. While Turkey did not complete its scrap purchases for late September, most Turkish mills need to book large tonnages scrap for November shipments. Having said that, demand in the local Turkish rebar market is sluggish, causing serious concerns among market players. Also, the holiday in China which starts today and will last for almost ten days has created uncertainty.