The Turkish billet market stayed quiet, even though both domestic and foreign suppliers were present with their offers throughout the week. Market players pointed out that rebar prices keep softening, and buyers are showing very little interest.
Conditions remain tough for Turkish long steel producers. They’re struggling to make sales while still dealing with high production costs. Scrap prices around $340–342/t CFR Türkiye leave no room for profit. On top of that, imported billet isn’t attractive anymore, logistical issues in the Red Sea and rising billet prices have made it less viable.
There’s a generally pessimistic mood in the semi-finished products segment. Local Turkish mills were offering square billet at $485–495/t EXW, with the lowest achievable price currently around $485/t EXW. Still, there’s simply no real buying interest.
In the import segment, Russian billet was heard at $450–455/t CFR, but buyers were aiming for $440–450/t CFR. Offers from Malaysia for September shipment were seen at $485–490/t CFR, a few buyers are interested, but nothing has been finalized yet due to late delivery schedules. Chinese billet (3sp grade) for September was offered at $460–465/t CFR.
Russian billet offers were around $438–440/t FOB Black Sea from major suppliers, with shipments scheduled for August. Donbas sellers were trying slightly lower at $435–438/t FOB Black Sea.
In Egypt, Russian billet was offered last week at $465–495/t CFR, which translates to about $430–460/t FOB. Around 5,000–6,000 tonnes were reportedly sold to Egypt by the end of the week.
A large Indian blast furnace billet producer raised its offer for 3sp billet for October shipment to $435/t FOB.
China, meanwhile, is picking up the pace. One industry source commented:
“Given the unprecedented acceleration of China’s billet exports, we expect tough competition in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa. If Iran doesn’t act fast with smarter trade policies, alternative markets, and more competitive pricing, it could lose significant market share to China.”
Billet import prices in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region increased by $5–13/t this week. That was driven by rising semi-finished steel prices and a $2–3/t hike in insurance costs for shipments going through the Red Sea, mostly due to renewed geopolitical tensions and Houthi threats.
That said, demand in all major export destinations remains sluggish. If this continues, Chinese billet inventories might pile up, which could push prices down in a week or two.
Currently, Chinese 150mm 4sp billet is offered at $460/t CFR Jebel Ali and $462–465/t CFR Saudi Arabia’s west coast, for lots of 30,000 tonnes or more. However, sentiment across Southeast Asia, Türkiye, and the Middle East remains bearish, with no strong buying interest.
A major Qatari buyer has started negotiations for August-shipment billet, targeting $492–495/t CFR UAE ports like Hamriyah, Abu Dhabi, or Jebel Ali, for cargoes of 30,000 tonnes or more. In the spot market, 2,000 tonnes of 150mm 3sp billet were sold at $490/t delivered to a UAE re-roller. Another 5,000 tonnes were booked at $485/t delivered to Abu Dhabi for prompt shipment by a merchant producer.
Saudi buyer Al Rajhi was heard to have booked 55,000 tonnes of billet at $452/t CFR Jeddah for rebar production.
From Southeast Asia, Thailand booked 2,000 tonnes of S235JR slabs from Japan. The price was reported at $480/t CFR, with delivery expected in August.
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