Published by:Geoff Mattson<>
14 May 2025 @ 20:38 UTC

Turkish steelmakers booked an additional deep-sea cargo from the US East Coast during the week to Wednesday, May 14, bringing the month’s total to five reported deals, as easing pressure on Turkey’s finished long steel market supported renewed procurement. A Turkish steel mill in the Izmir region booked the most recently reported deep-sea scrap cargo from the US East Coast on Tuesday May 13. The cargo comprised a heavy melting scrap No1 and No2 (80:20) mix priced at $341.50 per tonne CFR, Fastmarkets confirmed the following day.
This followed four earlier East Coast bookings reported in the past week.
On Friday May 9, a Marmara-region mill purchased a cargo from a separate exporter that included an 85:15 HMS mix priced at $342.50 per tonne CFR (equivalent to $340 per tonne on an 80:20 basis), with shredded and bonus-grade scrap sold at $360 per tonne CFR.
On May 8, another mill in Izmir booked a cargo containing HMS 1&2 (80:20)at $337 per tonne CFR, with shredded and bonus scrap priced at $357 per tonne CFR.
On May 7, a90:10 HMS cargo was purchased at $342 per tonne CFR ($339 on an 80:20 basis), with shredded and bonus material priced at $359 per tonne CFR, also destined for a buyer in Izmir.
The latest increase in Turkish procurement was supported by improving conditions in the local long steel market, which had previously weighed on sentiment.
State-run long steel producer Kardemir launched a rebar tender on Wednesday at higher prices, offering 12-32mm material at 21,550 lira ($556) per tonne ex-works, or 25,860 lira per tonne including value-added tax. The mill sold at least 24,000 tonnes during the tender, according to market participants.
Despite the higher CFR levels for US-origin scrap, Fastmarkets’ weekly steel scrap HMS 1&2 (80:20) export index, fob New York was calculated at $310.38 per tonne on Wednesday, down from $311 per tonne on May 7. The steel scrap shredded scrap, export index, fob New York was calculated at $330.38 per tonne on Wednesday, down from $331 per tonne on May 7.
The index movement reflected a rise in freight costs to $29 per tonne, up from $27 per tonne a week earlier, which partially offset higher CFR deal prices.
Meanwhile, the US and China announced a temporary 90-day truce on select reciprocal tariffs this week, lowering headline import duties on recycled materials and other goods from 125% to 10%. The changes apply to tariffs imposed earlier in the year and will remain in place through mid-August.
However, sources told Fastmarkets that the development held limited immediate significance.
It delays things for 90 days and gives everyone a bit of breathing room, a US source told Fastmarkets on Wednesday. But that doesn’t change the fundamentals — scrap is still about supply and demand. This might support sentiment, but it doesn’t move material.
Another source who sells into the domestic and export markets said uncertainty remains high. The politics are moving fast, but the economics haven’t caught up, the source said. There’s still distrust over the China deal, and no one wants to make major moves until they see more certainty.
The same source noted that domestic buying programs in the US were stable compared with April. A lot of the buying programs I’ve seen this month aren’t materially different than last month.
Inbound flows into shredders also appeared to be improving. Shredders are not having trouble getting scrap, the same source added. If anything, scale scrap availability is picking up and the peddler market is improving. It’s not drying up like we saw earlier in the year.
Fastmarkets’ daily assessment for steel billet domestic exw Tangshan, Northern China was 2,990 yuan ($414.85) per tonne on Wednesday, up by 10 yuan per tonne from 2,980 yuan per tonne on Tuesday, continuing a modest upward trend in early May.
On the US West Coast, export activity was muted, with no confirmed cargoes since April. Fastmarkets’ weekly export indices for steel scrap HMS 1&2 (80:20), export index, fob Los Angeles and steel scrap shredded scrap, export index, fob Los Angeles held steady at $282 and $287 per tonne respectively, on Wednesday.