Turkey scrap importers buy 13 cargoes so far for April

Turkish steelmakers have purchased 13 deep-sea scrap import cargoes for April shipment, according to Argus records, putting them in a strong position to keep buying steadily if there is no surge in rebar demand in the next week.

Turkish scrap importers are aware that one of their larger competitors in the country may soon return to the market for April shipment, having been absent from buying since 20 January.

An Izmir mill bought a hefty 20 deep-sea cargoes between 10 November and 20 January, Argus' Turkish deal records show. No mill has ever been heard to have bought this many cargoes in such a short period since Argus began covering the Turkish scrap import market in 2014.

The mill had stayed away from the seaborne market for six weeks because of planned maintenance in April, sources said. Its absence from the import market has allowed another large Turkish mill to buy 10 deep-sea cargoes at an average of $420/t cfr for premium HMS 1/2 80:20.

Argus tracked 26 deep-sea cargoes to Turkey for January shipment — the period with usually the least trades in the first quarter because of tight supply. A total of 42 deep-sea trades were tracked for February shipment, and 30 for March shipment so far (see table). There are still March cargoes available from the US and Baltic regions, so the total number of shipments may rise further this week.

A total of 12 of the 19 deep-sea cargoes traded into Turkey since 22 February are from the Baltic-Russia-Scandinavia region. More Baltic cargoes are expected to have been concluded and details of these deals may begin to circulate in the market soon. But most of the supply for any upcoming trades is expected to come from the US, continental Europe or the UK.

There was still a substantial volumes of shred in Turkish scrap importers' past 19 purchases, with most of the material coming from the Baltics. One US exporter said it expects the premium for shred over HMS 1/2 80:20 to drop back to $5/t from $10/t, although it may depend on the volume offered in any cargo.

By Alex Reynolds