With Turkish steel producers'
scrap bookings last week which were consistently at similar price levels to each other, the downward tendency in
scrap prices has come to a halt. Moreover, with Turkish mills' increased
scrap demand as of the middle of last week,
scrap offer prices for
Turkey have moved up slightly.
As SteelOrbis has previously reported, in the latest ex-
US scrap transaction in
Turkey last weekend the price for HMS I/II 80:20 grade, which had previously regressed to $446/mt CFR, has improved to $450/mt CFR. Despite the ongoing adverse seasonal and political conditions, which also affect
Turkey, the ex-
US HMS I/II 80:20
scrap price has only declined to the level of $445/mt CFR. SteelOrbis has heard that this week's ex-
US scrap offers to
Turkey stand at $455-460/mt CFR.
In ex-European
scrap transactions to
Turkey, the price for HMS I/II 70:30
scrap has been at $433-435/mt CFR, while the HMS I/II 80:20
scrap price has been at $446-448/mt CFR.
Last week, in ex-Black Sea Romanian
scrap transactions to
Turkey, prices have slightly decreased. Although a Romanian
scrap supplier has cut its prices to $418-420/mt CFR, this move has neither been supported by other Romanian suppliers nor by Russian A3
scrap suppliers. This week, it is heard that ex-Black Sea A3
scrap offers stand at about $440/mt CFR. However, it is also reported that Turkish mills' price idea has remained below $430/mt CFR.
This week, Turkish mills are observed to be remaining cautious as regards concluding new
scrap bookings. Due to the political turmoil in the
Middle East and
North Africa which are
Turkey's key export markets especially for long steel products,
Turkey's steel exports have been adversely affected and this raises difficulties in the finished steel markets. Turkish steel producers are expected to decide their next
scrap bookings depending on their assessment of trends in the finished steel markets, while abstaining from aggressive
scrap booking activity for the time being.