Turkish import ferrous scrap plunged on Tuesday as sentiment turned downward.
Bearish attitudes based on a lack of bookings and pressure from Chinese billet sales in Asia at $300/mt FOB fogged a definite price for market participants, sources said on Tuesday.
"I really don't know what's happening," a buyer for an electric arc furnace-based producer in the Marmara region said.
Traders offered up bearish forward predictions for the market. A US trader said he had heard negotiations taking a downward turn on Monday, while a Turkish trader said that the last trade level of $330/mt was not repeatable. He pitched the market $20/mt down, or a range of $210-$315/mt for the next workable level.
"The Turks have a problem; they want to calm the market without collapsing it as their steel business would collapse as well, but it's difficult to control," a European trader said. "They want under $300/mt; nothing too drastic. No one will make the first step, though, so everyone is stuck."
The impasse was firmly in place, according to a European scrap seller, who said it restricted him from talking any pricing regarding the market.
Scrap pricing increases have faltered since Friday, and now swung back, as cheaper Chinese billets lend pressure to Turkish mills. Producers in China are beginning to look outward again as domestic consumption stills, returning excess material to the market and making Turkish export products uncompetitive once booking begins.
During the pricing increase, however, Chinese sellers canceled cargoes of semi-finished products. Mistrust now circles talk of buying Chinese material, as any return of upward volatility could cause buyers to lose out on a second round.
Platts assessed HMS I/II 80:20 CFR Turkey at $315/mt on Tuesday, down $13/mt from Monday.
