Following the recent price increase attempts by hot rolled coil (HRC) mills, mainly supported by firmer scrap sentiments, Turkish hollow section prices have shown a modest upward shift this week. However, market sources report that most pipe producers remain positioned near the lower end of the price range and continue to offer discounts to secure orders. Demand in both the domestic and export segments remains muted, raising doubts about the durability of the current upward trend. Many producers note that the market does not yet support sustained price increases, and expect that any gains seen this week could easily fade unless purchasing activity improves.
“Although many HRC producers are attempting to raise prices, they seem disconnected from the real demand situation. With the end of the year approaching, purchasing activity is slowing even further. These price increases are not meaningful, because everyone knows that actual deal levels remain below the official workable prices. For this reason, the recent fluctuations are unlikely to have any lasting impact on the market,” a pipe producer told SteelOrbis
As a result, workable domestic hollow section prices have increased slightly this week to $620-640/mt ex-works, marking a $10/mt rise from last week. However, several producers continue to offer discounted levels of $600-615/mt ex-works for larger tonnages.
Export pricing has followed the same pattern, with offers inching up to $610-625/mt FOB. Still, due to weaker demand compared with the domestic market, producers are granting discounts, and transaction levels are reported to be closer to $590-600/mt FOB.