Turkish scrap market sees increase in activity

The Turkish scrap markets have been experiencing increased activity since last week. After delaying their scrap purchases for a long time due to the slackening in the long product markets, last week the Turkish mills finally recommenced their purchases and were heard to have concluded a number of bookings. The price levels of these bookings -most of which were for deep sea scrap- were in the following ranges:

HMS I/II 60:40 ex-Europe        : $262-267/mt CFR Turkish ports
HMS I/II 80:20 ex-UK            : $277/mt CFR Turkish ports
HMS I/II 80:20 ex-US            : $277/mt CFR Turkish ports
Shredded scrap ex-US            : $281/mt CFR Turkish ports
A3 scrap ex-Baltic Sea 
(15% of the cargo is bonus)     : $279/mt CFR Nemrut
A3 scrap ex-Black Sea           : $278-280/mt CFR Turkish ports 

If we look at the market situation this week, we see an overall activity increase in the steel market. Long product prices are rising in the local Turkish market. It has also been observed that export offers from Turkish mills are indicating slight increases. The main factor behind this activity is the Euro/US Dollar exchange rate. The appreciation of the Euro against the US Dollar makes the offers of the Turkish mills attractive in Europe. Under these circumstances, it is a matter of concern what kind of strategy Turkish mills -which have now cheered up- will follow in their scrap purchases. Since the bookings concluded last week provided relief for the mills, it would be wrong to say that they are in a hurry to purchase scrap for now. Due to the strength of the Euro, there is no expectation for a decline in scrap prices. This week, a very slight increase may be observed in the prices of scrap. However, they are mostly expected to retain their levels of last week.