As Turkish mills continued to purchase import scrap, several transactions have been disclosed to the market today, October 27.
An Iskenderun-based mill concluded an ex-US scrap booking yesterday for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $292/mt CFR, shredded scrap at $297/mt CFR and bonus grade scrap at $302/mt CFR, for November shipment. SteelOrbis has also learned that another Iskenderun-based mill concluded another ex-US transaction last week for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $290.5/mt CFR, shredded scrap at $295.5/mt CFR and bonus grade scrap at $300.5/mt CFR, again for November shipment. As a result, ex-US prime grade scrap prices have indicated a gradual increase.
Meanwhile, a Baltic deal has been concluded by a Marmara-based steelmaker with HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $293.5/mt CFR. The previous deal from the Baltic region was closed at $292.5/mt CFR for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap.
Also, an ex-Belgium transaction was concluded by a mill active in Turkey’s Iskenderun region last week, consisting of 7,000 mt of HMS I/II 80:20 scrap, 15,000 mt of shredded scrap and 18,000 mt of bonus grade scrap at the average price level of $295/mt CFR. The benchmark HMS I/II 80:20 scrap quotations in the deal is estimated to be around $288/mt CFR, $1/mt higher than SteelOrbis’ daily price for the European prime grade scrap previous to this information.
As the end of October is closer now, Turkish mills have almost completed their purchases for November shipments. Some market sources state that there may be two to three cargoes left and there are some purchases already made for December shipments. Turkey is expected to purchase at least 30 deep sea cargoes for December shipments, and most of the market sources expect prices to remain firm and add there is a room for an increase. Mentioning there are too many uncertainties in the market such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the financial burden on Turkish mills resulting from the unstoppable depreciation of the Turkish lira against the important currencies, many believe that the market is now balanced in terms of supply and demand.
