In March, Turkish ferrous scrap imports rose by 12% m-o-m to 1.83 million tonnes (mnt) from 1.63 mnt in February. Furthermore, on an y-o-y basis, scrap imports recorded a 22% decrease compared to the 2.35 mnt observed during the same period last year.
Key updates
Crude steel production rises 4% m-o-m: Turkiye’s crude steel production stood at 3.2 mnt in March, reflecting a slight increase of 4% compared to 3.08 mnt in February, as per World Steel Association (WSA) data.
Lira exchange rate: The value of the Turkish lira dropped to 32.42 in March from 31.29 in February.
Country-wise shipments
Imports from US rebound over 150% m-o-m: Scrap imports from the US saw a sharp rise of 161% m-o-m to 0.47 mnt in March from 0.18 mnt in the previous month. Similarly, on a y-o-y basis, import volumes also rose by 9% as compared to March 2023’s 0.43 mnt.
Imports from UK rise 65%: Scrap imports from the UK into Turkiye witnessed a rise of 65% to 0.28 mnt in March from 0.17 mnt in the preceding month. However, compared to March 2023’s 0.31 mnt, imports are down by 10%.
Imports from Netherlands down 29% m-o-m: Turkish mills imported approximately 0.22 mnt of scrap from the Netherlands in March, reflecting a notable decrease of 29% compared to 0.31 mnt in February. Similarly, on an annual basis, imports experienced a decrease of 15% compared to 0.26 mnt during the same period of last year.
Semi-finished, finished steel market updates
Billet imports: Turkiye’s steel billet imports increased by 36% m-o-m in March to 631,232 t from 464,099 t in February, as per Customs data maintained by BigMint. Malaysia was the major exporter with 200,180 t followed by Russia with 160,014 t. Meanwhile, import volumes remained largely stable y-o-y compared to 634,271 t in the year-ago period.
Rebar exports: Turkiye’s rebar exports decreased by 19% to 377,464 t in March compared to 465,235 t in February, as per Customs data maintained by BigMint. Meanwhile, export volumes increased by 48% y-o-y compared to 255,058 t in the year-ago period. In finished long exports, Romania was the largest importer with 96,516 t, followed by Yemen with 41,943 t.