Netherlands becomes Turkey’s top scrap supplier in December

Turkish mills’ imports of ferrous scrap remained strong year on year in the last month of 2020, in line with the sharp rise seen in Turkish mills’ crude steel output in a bullish market.

Turkish mills’ crude steel production rose by 17.7% year on year in December to 3.4 million mt. Steel production in Turkey, thus exceeded the prior year’s performance in 2020, despite the pandemic, and reached 35.8 million mt, up 6% on year. Turkey became Europe’s largest and the world’s seventh largest steel producer in 2020.

According to the latest Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK) data observed by S&P Global Platts, Turkish mills’ scrap imports reached 2.34 million mt in December, higher than 2.05 million mt imported in the same month the previous year. Turkish mills’ scrap bookings from their global suppliers thus hit 22.4 million mt total for 2020, increasing by 19% year on year.

As scrap imports from Turkey’s traditional largest scrap supplier, the US, fell on year by 20.7% to 381,300 mt in December, the Netherlands became Turkey’s top scrap supplier in that month at 402,300 mt, sharply higher than 253,200 mt imported from that country in the same month the previous year.

Turkish mills imported 207,500 mt of ferrous scrap from the UK in December, relatively flat on year, while imports from Russia totaled 200,000 mt in that month, up 32% on year.

Turkish mills’ scrap imports from Belgium totaled 168,200 mt in December, down 31% on year, while imports from Denmark rose to 132,800 mt, significantly up from 32,200 mt imported in the same month the previous year.

Other scrap suppliers to Turkey in December were: Romania (123,000 mt), France (108,900 mt) Lithuania (77,200 mt) and Venezuela (53,500 mt), the latest data showed.

— Cenk Can