Turkey – the world’s largest ferrous scrap importer, witnessed a rise of 9% at 2.01 mn t in Nov’20 as against 1.85 mn t in Oct’20. Restocking ahead of winters resulted in increased imports.
US market share in scrap imports persists at 20% in CY’20 – In Jan-Nov’20, Turkey’s scrap import volume stood at 19.93 mn t, (up by 19% y-o-y) from 16.79 mn t. USA accounted for a 20% share.
Netherland remained the largest exporter to Turkey and stood at 0.35 mn t in Nov’20. USA, one of the leading ferrous scrap suppliers, exported 0.24 mn t in Nov’20, registering a drop of 29% as against 0.34 mn t in Oct’20. SteelMint’s assessment of USA origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) stood at $290/t CFR Turkey in Oct’20 against $300/t CFR Turkey in Sep’20.
Rise in steel output –Turkey’s crude steel production for Nov’20 was 3.2 mn t, up by 11.6% y-o-y, as per WSA data.
Increase in Turkey’s flat steel exports in November due to earlier orders – Turkey’s finished flat steel export volumes rose to 0.6 mn t in Nov’20 (up by 7%) as against 0.56 mn t a month ago. The rise in steel exports recorded in November was due to export orders booked earlier, not because exports were profitable.
Quantity in mn t
Source: SteelMint stats and customs data
Global market situation and outlook stable, except for US – The current status of the market can be described as stable, yet again with the exception of the US market which seems to be unstable. The outlook for the next quarter is mostly satisfactory, except for the US market at present, according to IREPAS.
Outlook – According to bulk scrap bookings recorded by SteelMint in Nov & Dec’20, Turkey’s scrap imports are likely to remain on the higher side backed by restocking ahead winters. Turkey’s imported scrap prices have increased from a monthly average of $290/t in Oct’20 to $440/t in Dec’20.
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