The daily Davis Index for Turkish imports of US-origin HMS 1&2 (80:20) increased by $7.41/mt to $305.41/mt cfr on Wednesday, hitting its highest level since May 29, 2019, as demand outpaces supply.
Turkish mills booked three bulk cargoes over the past 24 hours; two from the US and one from the Baltic as mills continue to book cargoes for December shipment.
One cargo was booked out of the US on Wednesday at an HMS 1&2 (80:20) price level of $306.50/mt cfr, while a cargo was booked out of the US on Tuesday at an HMS 1&2 (80:20) price level of $305/mt cfr. A cargo from the Baltic region was also booked on Tuesday at the same $305/mt cfr price level.
The three cargo bookings come five days after the last confirmed bookings when prices stood at around $293-294/mt cfr. As Davis Index has reported all week, following the booking of 11 cargoes in the first half of last week scrap suppliers began a push to raise prices citing the tightening supply. The quiet period that followed has yielded a price increase of at least $10/mt cfr from prior levels.
Turkish mill order books look healthy and come a time when scrap supply has been affected in several countries due to restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A strengthening Turkish lira helped mills to consolidate domestic spot rebar prices to a narrow range of TRY4,480-4,520/mt ex-works ($573-578/mt), including 18pc VAT, on Wednesday, down from a range TRY4,500-4,600/mt ex-works the prior day.
($1 = TRY7.81)