Turkiye's ferrous scrap imports
decreased by 14% to 15.56 million tonnes (mnt) in the first ten months of
CY'23, compared to 18.06 mnt in 10MCY'22, as per customs data. Notably, exports
declined from the UK, a major supplier, due to lesser volume during mid-year
and towards the end of the year.
Import volumes showed a mixed
trend as volume remained low in January, February, June, and September months
as Turkish mills remain skeptical of better steel demand in the market owing to
inflation and a high-interest rate, followed by a disturbance during an
earthquake.
Import volumes touched a peak in
March 2023 (2.34 mnt) in the last six months as Turkish mills began procuring
for reconstruction activities after the earthquake occurred on February 2o23.
Meanwhile, Turkish steel
producers struggled to maintain normal operations following the weak steel
sector and a fluctuating currency rate in the last couple of months. Both
domestic and international steel demand remained low, which impacted scrap
import volumes, though import prices from the US in bulk continued a downtrend
because of a lack of interest from the mill side.
The country imported 1.49 mnt of
ferrous scrap in October 2023, an increase of 39% m-o-m compared to 1.07 mnt in
September. Scrap imports are also hiked nominally by 3% y-o-y against 1.44 mnt
in October 2022.
·
Billet imports: Turkiye's
steel billet imports rose by 28% y-o-y to 4.90 mnt in 10MCY23 (Jan-Oct'23) as
against 3.84 mnt in the year-ago period, as per customs data. Russia was the
major exporter with 2.57 mnt followed by Algeria with 0.44 mnt. Similarly,
import volumes increased by 12% m-o-m to 317,053 t in Oct from 420,048 t in
Aug.
·
Rebar exports: Turkiye's
rebar exports dropped by 45 % y-o-y to 3.33 mnt in 10MCY23 (Jan-Oct'23) as
against 6.08 mnt in the year-ago period, as per Customs data. Israel was the
top finished-long importer at 878,512 t followed by Yemen at 610,969 t during
the period. However, export volumes declined by 17% m-o-m to 389,993 t in
Oct'23 from 283,832 t in Sep'23.
Country-wise
shipments
Imports
from Lithuania drop by 33% in 10MCY'23: Shipments from Lithuania
decreased by 33% in 10MCY'23 to 0.64 mnt y-o-y as compared to 0.96 mnt in
10MCY22. Imports remain largely stable at 0.05 mnt in Oct'23 as compared to
0.05 mnt in Sept'23.
Shipments
from the UK decline 26% in 10MCY23: The UK exported 1.17 mnt of scrap to Turkiye in
10MCY'23, down 26% compared to 1.58 mnt in 10MCY22. Similarly, m-o-m volumes in
June decreased significantly by 33% to 0.06 mnt from 0.09 mnt in September, the
third lowest volume in the last ten months after 0.02 mnt in June and 0.05 mnt
in February.
Imports
from the US up 3% in 10MCY'23: Turkiye's imports from the US saw a 3% uptick,
reaching 3.63 mnt, maintaining the US's position as the leading exporter to
Turkiye. On a m-o-m basis, a 27% rise was seen in total import volume during
October (0.38 mnt) as compared to 0.30 mnt in September 2023. Notably, after
experiencing declines in January, February, and June, there was a significant
rebound in July, with import volumes surging by 148% m-o-m to 0.62 mnt from
0.25 mnt in June. Throughout the first ten months of CY'23, March, May, July, and
October stood out with stronger import volumes from the US compared to other
months.
Key
updates
·
Crude steel output declines: Turkiye's
crude steel production was recorded at 27.42 mnt in 10MCY'23, down 9% compared
to 10MCY'22, as per World Steel Association (WSA) data.
·
Lira falls: The
value of the Turkish lira dropped to 27.48 in October from 18.68 in January.
Outlook
Turkish mills are expected to
procure actively towards the last two months, mainly due to winter restocking.
Hence, it is expected that import volumes may touch 18.5 mnt towards the end of
CY'23. Continuous bulk deals from the US and EU, on the other hand, are
expected to push up bulk scrap prices.
Source: Steel mint