Offers to Turkey for ferrous scrap up by $30 for December

Scrap offer prices to Turkey have rose to US$460-465/MT CFR on Tuesday from US$ 425-430/MT CFR on December
2. Inventories are low and Turks have started procuring the material.

US
export offers to Turkish mills have moved up by US$30-35/MT this month. The heavy melting
scrap sold for export rose by US$ 50/MT on Wednesday to a new midpoint of $415/MT
delivered to East Coast docks in bulk as increased demand both domestically and
abroad helped push up prices.

“I
know US$ 405 has been paid at the docks and US$ 410 is probably out there,” said
one East Coast scrap broker/dealer.

“I
expect CFR Turkey prices to reach US$ 470/MT for HMS 1&2 blend (80/20) by
the end of the year, leaving further upside potential for US docks prices as
they rise in lockstep with CFR Turkey levels”, he added.

Heavy
melting scrap No. 1 was said by one Northeast scrap dealer to be selling into
US mills at about US$ 390/MT delivered.

This
makes the $400-410/MT bulk docks price logical as exporters have to best
domestic prices in order to pull tons from mills, with the freight haul to the
docks adding a couple of dollars as well, according to sources.

“At
US$ 405-410/MT, I'm a seller,” said a second Northeast scrap dealer of bid
levels from East Coast exporters seeking to fill cargoes as Turkish mills
ratchet up their scrap procurement. He has yet to sell any export tons in
December, however, having only placed material domestically thus far this
month.

According to a market source, “Turkish mills may
have bought up to 16 cargoes last week, with at least some coming from US exporters”