DAILY STEEL SCRAP: Mills resume bookings despite holiday period, prices move up

Turkish steel mills resumed booking deep-sea scrap late on Tuesday, resulting in higher prices, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday May 19 - the start of a public holiday in the country.

The Turkish import market had been quiet since the Eid al-Fitr holiday that began on Wednesday May 12. Monday and Tuesday May 17 and 18 were normal working days, but no bookings were done until late on Tuesday.

A mill in the Iskenderun region bought a European cargo comprising 20,500 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix) at $506.50 per tonne, 9,000 tonnes of bonus grade scrap at $516.50 per tonne and 500 tonnes of rail scrap at $521.50 per tonne.

A mill in the Izmir region booked a cargo from the UK comprising 15,000 tonnes of HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix) at $500 per tonne and 5,000 tonnes of shredded scrap at $520 per tonne.

And a mill in the Marmara region bought a Baltic cargo comprising HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix) at $507 per tonne and bonus grade scrap at $517 per tonne. The tonnages were not clear at the time of publication.

The bookings were made before Turkey began its public holiday on Wednesday in commemoration of former president Kemal Atatürk, as well as the youth and sports day.

The daily index for steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix), North Europe origin, cfr Turkey was calculated at $506.21 per tonne on Wednesday, up by $3.96 per tonne day on day from $502.25 per tonne.

And the corresponding daily index for steel scrap, HMS 1&2 (80:20 mix), United States origin, cfr Turkey was $510.78 per tonne on Wednesday, also up by $3.95 per tonne.

The premium for US material over European scrap was $4.57 per tonne, just fractionally down from $4.58 per tonne on Tuesday.