US premium cargoes led pricing for Turkish import ferrous scrap on Tuesday, with a flurry of UK sales showing tighter differentials for the market.
Two premium US scrap exporters fielded cargoes on Tuesday, logged at $219/mt and $218.50/mt respectively for the 80:20 segment of the cargo. Neither cargo could be completely confirmed, but the $219/mt trade carried tacit confirmation from a source close to the transaction.
Three confirmed cargoes came from the UK, and a fourth of Benelux origin at the same pricing point. In addition, one more UK-origin cargo was heard without confirmation. These trades all fell into the range $215-$216/mt, with the average value at $215.50/mt. A further UK booking was heard at $215/mt, but this fell after the time stamp and could not be considered in the assessment.
Differentials between the two origins left market sources scratching their heads, as UK cargoes typically carry a discount of $5-$10/mt against the most premium material in the market.
Sources struggled to explain the gap shrinking to a narrow of $2.50/mt, as Turkish sellers had expected UK yards to be pounded by the pound's weakness in the wake of Brexit. Bids on Monday dropped as far as $196/mt from one buyer, who saw this as equivalent to offers at $220/mt made Thursday. Bids at $211/mt were heard to have been rejected on Monday, making the chances of such a dive unlikely.
S&P Global Platts assessed HMS I/II 80:20 at $219/mt Tuesday, down $3/mt from Monday.
