Turkey: Scrap import prices drop while market awaits next round of bookings

Turkey's scrap import market witnessed a few deals being concluded at low offers before the Eid holidays. Notably, considering the absence of Turkish buyers in the last couple of weeks, imported scrap offers have dropped significantly by around $60-70/t in a week. Buyers managed to achieve significant discounts in recent deals, while a few suppliers agreed to trade at levels lower than the standard market price.

SteelMint's assessment for the US origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) is now at$560-565/t CFR levels. Interestingly, offers have come down to over an one-month low.

Recent deals

Steelmakers were away from scrap booking amid the downward trend and sluggish demand in the finished steel market. Suppliers, in turn, are not in a hurry to quote fresh offers, and are waiting for a clear market picture after Eid holidays.

Market overview

• • Lira depreciates against USD: The national currency has slightly down, after witnessing stability in the last couple of weeks. Currently, the lira is being traded at 14.81 against the US dollar as compared to 14.68 a week ago.
    
    
  • Domestic scrap prices trend down: Turkish steel producers have revised their domestic scrap quotes amid extremely low imported prices and weak finished steel and semi-finished sector. Steelmakers announced a further decrease in their purchase prices for local scrap. Other domestic producers kept their prices stable, however, market participants believe that the downward movement will continue in the coming days.
    
    
  • Rebar down further: Domestic steelmakers lowered their finished steel prices to both local and overseas customers amid insufficient demand. The country's steel producers were forced to slash both local and export rebar prices on the back of a significant decline in imported scrap prices. The major steel producer ICDAS announced further price cuts of $30/t against last week. Fresh offers are now set at $910/t exw Biga and $921/t CFR Marmara.