Sentiment in the Turkish ferrous scrap import market was tempered on Thursday, as weakening long product prices in the local market showed producers unable to reach expected sales levels.
Domestic rebar dropped suddenly by around $20-$25/mt, based on scrap falls last week. Sales have struggled as the lira has remained weak against the dollar. While the lira has regained some ground, business remains slow.
"There was some liquidity problems," said an agent in Turkey. "Some new credit lines have been set free for investors. We are hoping that with this free credit investments will soon start and business will get better."
Export rebar prices are also pressured against scrap prices, with FOB pricing assessed at $375.50/mt by Platts on Thursday.
US merchants have made it clear that pricing lower than $240/mt is not an option, with their sights being set higher at $245-$250/mt, sources said.
"For the US this is right currently but the rebar price does not support," said a Turkish producer.
A European scrap merchant was unconvinced that the slight uptick in the market was sustainable, as while it appeared mills were in the market looking for cargo, he did not believe there had been any significant recovery in demand for semi-finished products.
"Mills are looking for even less than $220/mt in Europe, which is not available," he said. "There's not many offers. We are looking at the EU domestic market first, as the Turkish producers have pushed down so far and it's unclear how far the EU mills will go. Turkish mills are asking for offers. It's the start of the hunting season now."
S&P Global Platts assessed HMS I/II 80:20 at $236/mt CFR Turkey on Thursday, stable from Wednesday.
