Turkish steel imports from China see sharp rise in H1 2015

By  Paul Ploumis 20 Aug 2015  Last updated at  05:59:55 GMT

ANKARA (Scrap Monster): The most recent data published by the Turkish Steel Producers’ Association (TCUD) indicates significant jump in steel imports by the country from China. The overall Turkish steel imports jumped higher by 194% during the initial six-month period of the year in comparison with the previous year.

According to TCUD data, the imports of flat rolled steel products from China during the six-month period totaled 526,000 tons, rising sharply by 344% when compared with the imports during H1 last year. Also, long steel product imports surged higher by 141.4% over the previous year to 107,000 tons during January to June this year. The country imported 115,000 tons of steel pipes from China during H1 2015. This is 33.4% higher when compared with the 86,000 tons imported during the corresponding half-yearly period in 2014.

Meantime, sources indicate that Turkish demand for HRC steel continued to remain lackluster. The domestic HRC prices are still under pressure. The domestic HRC prices in Turkey currently stand at around USD 375-390 EXW exclusive of VAT. The Turkish buyers are said to have rejected HRC offers from CIS in the range of USD 340-360 CFR, expecting further discount. The HRC export market also remained weak on account of waning demand in overseas market. The Turkish export offers for HRC currently stand at USD 360-370 FOB.

The Turkish import price for scrap steel witnessed marginal rise during the current week. The import price of mixed waste witnessed an increase of $5 per ton to $240 per ton CFR when compared with the prices during early last week. As per trade sources, the import of mixed scrap by a Turkish steel mill from the Baltic Sea region averaged at $241 per ton.