Turkey has continued to conclude some deep sea scrap deals this week. The new transactions show that the range of $335-345/mt CFR has not changed, despite the soft upward push observed in the prices offered. The lack of steel sales by Turkish mills has been exerting downward pressure, while some sources at the mills admitted that scrap prices could have increased if there had been a recovery in their sales.
A Marmara-based producer has concluded an ex-UK booking for 12,000 mt of HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $335/mt CFR and 8,000 mt of shredded at $355/mt CFR, to be shipped in July. As a result, SteelOrbis has revised its ex-UK/EU scrap prices to $335-337/mt CFR, increasing them by $2/mt on the lower end.
Meanwhile, an Izmir-based producer has concluded an ex-Baltic deal for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $343/mt CFR. The cargo will be loaded from Riga and will be shipped in August.
A mill in the Marmara region has also concluded an ex-Estonia booking for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $340.5/mt CFR. As a result, SteelOrbis’ reference prices for ex-Baltic scrap has been revised to $340.5-343/mt CFR, moving up a mere $0.25/mt, which is more or less stable.
Lastly, an ex-US scrap booking done by a Marmara-based producer has been closed for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $345/mt CFR, with shredded and bonus grade scrap at $365/mt CFR. The prices have remained stable. This information was not confirmed by the buyer or the seller by the time of publication but the deal is widely believed to have been done.
The pessimistic sentiment in Turkey’s import scrap market persists as all market players agree that Turkish mills’ finished steel sales have been underperforming for months now, especially exports. “With the quotas and protectionism all around the world, Turkey has lost almost all export markets or lost significant tonnages. This will not be changed in the short term. In particular, Turkey’s sales to the EU are not expected to recover from the latest quota blow,” a scrap supplier commented. Another agreed regarding the struggles of Turkish mills on the sales side, but also added, “Even with their resistance to buying scrap, citing their previous billet orders, their [Turkish producers’] scrap purchases for July shipment are very low. They have bought almost nothing for August shipment and billet offers are now for September-October shipment. They need more scrap for the near future.” A source from a Turkish mill stated today, July 3, “The second half of 2025 also looks bleak. Some mills are lowering their capacity utilization rates quietly. We hear now that some very well-known producers are in dire positions, with one even filing for bankruptcy protection. We can safely say that this summer will be very slow and silent.” SteelOrbis hears that ex-US scrap offers currently stand at $350s/mt CFR, while some European suppliers are offering at $345/mt CFR Turkey. “With the euro-dollar exchange rate, there are efforts to increase scrap prices on the sellers’ side. If Turkey’s rebar sales or exports had accelerated, we could have seen some increases in Turkey’s deep sea scrap purchase prices, because Turkish mills are working with very tight delivery terms for scrap,” another source at a mill said.