Turkiye reduced scrap import by 23.3% y/y in June

In June 2023, steel companies of Turkiye reduced the import of scrap by 23.3% compared to June 2022 – to 1.22 million tons. Compared to May, the figure fell by 29.5%. This is evidenced by the data of the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK), reports Kallanish.

More than 99% or 1.22 million tons of June imports were obsolete scrap grades. The average price of this raw material was $422.5/t against $575/t in June 2022 and $450/t in May 2023.

The USA was the largest supplier in June – 245.74 thousand tons, which is 31.3% less y/y. Belgium shipped 144.55 thousand tons of scrap to Turkiye compared to 42 thousand tons in June 2022, the Netherlands – 107.43 thousand tons (-31.6% y/y), Russia – 89.3 thousand t (+4.3 times), Canada – 86.6 thousand tons (+3 times).

In January-June 2023, the import of scrap to Turkiye fell by 22.9% compared to the same period of the previous year – to 9.63 million tons. The United States shipped the most raw materials during this period – 1.99 million tons. The Netherlands is in the second place, on the third – Belgium.

At the same time, the Turkish export of rebar more than halved in January-June – to 1.37 million tons.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2022, Turkiye reduced the import of scrap by 16.5% compared to 2021 – to 20.93 million tons. The decrease in the volume of scrap imports into the country was associated with the low workload of local steel mills in the second half of 2022.

Turkiye ranks eighth in the world in terms of steel production. In 2022, Turkish enterprises reduced production of steel by 12.9% compared to 2021 – to 35.1 million tons.