While some older deals have surfaced in Turkey’s import scrap market, Turkish mills’ appetite for scrap cannot be said to be increasing. Most Turkish mills will start to buy scrap for August shipment, though they remain cautious as their finished steel sales are still sluggish.
An ex-Netherlands deal done early last week by a Marmara-based steelmaker was closed at $337/mt CFR Turkey for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap, with the price at the upper end of the reference prices.
Another deal from the Baltic region done by an Iskenderun-based steel producer last Friday consisted of HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $338/mt CFR and bonus grade scrap at $358/mt CFR. This cargo is for prompt shipment, and some market sources report it will be loaded within ten days. While the price is slightly lower than the previously closed ex-Baltic bookings due to the prompt shipment, SteelOrbis has kept its reference prices for this region in the range of $341-342/mt CFR.
A German sub-collector has reported that export yards in Belgium and Amsterdam are bidding €250/mt DAP for local scrap, while some sales have already been done at this level to the export yards. As European mills are this year planning to go on holiday early and/or have plans to extend the holiday period, scrap suppliers in the EU are reporting that local demand is set to decline in July. “This is not something we only see in Turkey or in the EU,” a European source commented, “We see it all around the world. Steel sales are slow, the summer is here, and no one wants to increase their scrap purchase prices unless they are sure they can sell steel afterwards.” Meanwhile, some European scrap suppliers will also leave the market in the second half of July for the holidays. US scrap sellers report local scrap market prices are more attractive right now as compared to what export yards are paying. “Therefore, flow to inland is faster,” one source noted.
Turkey’s Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAŞ) has announced that, in line with its 2025 budget targets, it has increased wholesale natural gas prices effective as of July 2. While prices have been hiked for industrial and residential subscribers, no increase was announced for power plants. Natural gas prices for industrial users were raised by an average of 7.86 percent, while prices for residential subscribers increased by an average of 24.6 percent. This rise is expected to have a negative impact on Turkish mills’ production costs. Having struggled to increase their rebar sales prices for weeks now, Turkish mills are currently evaluating how they can pass on this cost increase to their customers.
Under the current circumstances, SteelOrbis believes the narrow price range of $335-345/mt CFR for the benchmark HMS I/II 80:20 scrap will be maintained in the coming days, unless Turkish mills take steps to officially cut their capacity utilization rates.