Rebar, billet prices slide in turkey

Rebar, billet prices slide in turkey on weaker scrap

Turkey / long products

Rebar and billet foreign sales remain challenging for Turkish producers as export customers prefer to refrain from active restocking amid falling prices. As a result, suppliers have chosen to decrease their offers and another round of discounts is anticipated, taking into account the downturn in the scrap segment. At the same time, business activity in the domestic long products market has revived.Business activity in the Turkish domestic market has improved slightly by the end of the week. As scrap prices indicated another drop, mills’ rebar offers also de- creased by $5/t over two days, to $410-420/t EXW depending on the region. Small lots of rebar were sold in the Izmir region at the lower end of the range. At the same time, there is a lack of material in the Marmara region as some leading sup- pliers have sold out their stocks. Market players said that mills in Turkey are trying to keep the price at the same level or even increase it due to the start of ware- house replenishment, Metal Expert has learnt.Rebar export offers from Turkey have lost around $10/t since last week at  $410-420/t FOB for November shipments. At the same time, some mills are ready to sell even at $405/t FOB, market players say. Business activity in the overseas markets leaves much to be desired. Buyers from Lebanon are just observing the situation in the segment, expecting lower prices. Inquiries are also coming from North African customers, mills report. Offers from Turkey are heard in the markets of the Far East, especially Hong Kong. “The Hong Kong market is almost full for November shipment. Turkish suppliers have nowhere to sell big volumes. They are late,” a market source told Metal Expert.There is also decline in prices across all segments in the Turkish billet market. domestic offer prices went down to $385-395/t EXW in most Turkish regions versus $390-400/t EXW last week. Some small lots were sold in Iskenderun and Izmir within the official offer range. Billet offers from the CIS lost around $5/t at around $370-380/t CFR Turkey over the week. “Turkish domestic billet is more competitive than imports from the CIS,” a trader said. Export offers from Turkey are standing at $380-390/t FOB for November shipments, losing around $10-15/t over the week. Some mills were in negotiations with Africa, while the buyer was targeting to book at no higher than $370/t CFR, Metal Expert     learnt.