Prices for Russian steel billets in the Turkish market increased by $10–20 in the last week of July, reaching $500–510 per ton including freight (CFR), Kommersant reports, citing an overview by the analytical company BigMint.

In Black Sea ports, Russian steel billets rose to $465–475 per ton (FOB), whereas a week earlier they cost $470 per ton. The reason is a reduction in supply: only limited volumes are available for September, and larger batches are unlikely to go on sale before the end of the month, as Russian metallurgists are currently focused on the domestic market.

In addition to the supply shortage, the increase in freight rates and insurance premiums due to rising tensions in the Black Sea contributed to price growth in Turkey. Transportation from Novorossiysk to the Turkish port of Marmara increased to $30–35 per ton, and to more distant ports – to $40–45 per ton. Turkey is one of the key buyers of Russian steel semi-finished products, and Russia is the largest supplier of steel billets to the country. Competition in the Turkish market is growing.

New EU quotas also indirectly affect the situation. From July 1, the EU reduced duty-free steel imports by 47%, and increased the duty for exceeding quotas to 50%. Turkey is one of the largest steel exporters to the European Union, and new restrictions could cost it up to $3 billion in annual revenue. This forces Turkish manufacturers to revise procurement strategies, intensifying competition in the domestic market. However, the direct cause of the price increase for Russian billets at the end of July was precisely the supply deficit and the rising logistics costs in the Black Sea.