Hollow section (HS) prices in Turkey have gone down by $30-40/mt over the past week. The market environment has not improved and is still under the impact of falling feedstock and scrap prices, currency fluctuations, and the overall economic difficulties in Turkey. Fundamental economic disturbances are holding back demand and, according to pipe-makers, even discounts have been failing to trigger sales.
Current offers in the local HS market are at around $770-860/mt ex-works, down about $30-40/mt from the previous week. The most recent offer from a major mill was reported to be at $770-800/mt ex-works, while several medium-sized suppliers quoted $830-860/mt ex-works. On the other hand, some smaller mills have been offering $1,000/mt ex-works, which is deemed unrealistic in the present market conditions.
“We have been facing the same issues for several weeks since there is no demand for the pipe segment in the domestic market. Our sole hope is that the export market shows that many pipe manufacturers are now operational and that we can maintain our own financial situation. We have been in this business for many years and have never seen a scenario like this. I'm not optimistic about the coming weeks, but we expect domestic demand to pick up a little after the holiday in Turkey because many purchasers appear to be waiting for HRC and scrap prices to settle before making purchases,” a pipe producer told SteelOrbis.
On the other hand, HS prices in the export market are at $880–900/mt FOB, down from around $900–950/mt at the end of last week. However, some other mills are attempting to sell at over $1,050/mt FOB, even though the top end of the range is barely considered to be feasible.