Increased demand for hot-rolled coil and cold-rolled coil from the Commonwealth of Independent States has led to a rise in prices for the first time since early March.
Metal Bulletin's weekly price assessment for CIS-origin HRC exports was $550-565 per tonne fob Black Sea on Monday June 18, up from $535-555 per tonne a week earlier. In the three months to June 11, the average HRC export price from the CIS had fallen by $72.5 per tonne fob Black Sea to $545 per tonne, compared with $617.5 per tonne on March 12. "The reason behind the growth [in export sales] is higher demand in Turkey, [where] they need to restock," one trader told Metal Bulletin. Purchasing activity in Turkey began to improve as the Islamic holy month...