The flat steel products market in Turkey remains largely inactive due to the holiday season and pressure from aggressive offers of material from China and Asia, which are dragging down prices, sources inform Kallanish.

The bearish sentiment in the flats segment has also persisted globally, with Turkish customers evaluating the situation while sitting on sufficient stocks. The export environment meanwhile remains unfavourable for Turkish exporters.

Kallanish assessed Turkish domestic hot rolled coil at $780-800/tonne ex-works for July-shipment material, down by 3.07% from $800-830/t ex-works a week earlier. One source suggests that June shipment is still possible from Habas and Erdemir.

At the same time, sources note the low end of the range was available for re-rollers, consumers of large quantities. One trading source says domestic prices will reach $750/t ex-works in around 30-40 days.

Market participants believe the increase in import duty will be postponed for another month until 1 June. The increase from 0-15% to 15-20% on imports of iron and steel products was supposed to take effect on 28 February, but the old duty regime has been extended a few times, currently till 1 May, due to the February earthquakes’ impact.

Imported material from China was offered at $650/t cfr Turkey, with a deal reported at around $647/t cfr, although it was not widely verified at the time of publication. Some sources note that lower prices for China-origin material were also available, adding this material could be from non-prime suppliers. South Korean material was quoted at $670-680/t cfr Turkey, which is feasible given the lower duty compared to China-origin material thanks to the free trade agreement between Turkey and Korea.

The unfavourable market environment for Turkey's flats exporters has meanwhile persisted due to competition with suppliers from Asia. Export offers for Turkish HRC were assessed at $770-790/t fob Turkey, down from $780-800/t fob a week earlier.

The weekly assessment for cold rolled coil was at $870-890/t ex-works.

Import CRC was on offer at $750-790/t cfr Turkey, with China-origin material corresponding to the low end of the range, while other Asian and Russian suppliers are at the high end.

Export offers for Turkish CRC were in a wide range of $850-890/t fob Turkey.

Turkey's domestic market was facing increased competition from cheaper imports, while its exports have grown, but at a slower pace compared to imports (see separate story).