The Week in One Page — Week of 12 September 2026
Bottom Line
Scrap prices heading into Turkey jumped this week after months of standing still. If you have Turkish purchases pending, price them at the new, higher level, not the old one.
5 Things You Need to Know
- Scrap prices into Turkey jumped about $7 to $8 per tonne this week. Three separate price reporters all confirmed the same move.
- Pakistan’s official scrap price has not moved in ten days. Real cargo sales this week landed close to that frozen price.
- A new scrap market in Bangladesh spiked hard last week, but has shown no fresh price since. Nobody can confirm the move yet.
- Middle East shipping risk grew over the weekend. Two new supply disruptions were reported right as markets closed Friday.
- Egypt is paying an unusually large premium for imported semi-finished steel, as Egyptian mills outbid Turkish buyers for the same cargoes.
Top 3 Actions This Week
- Double-check shipping costs before booking anything new. Monday morning, before quoting any price. Two new Middle East supply risks appeared right after Friday’s close, so shipping costs could jump before the market reacts.
- Hold Pakistan purchase offers at $417 to $420 per tonne. All week. Real trades are landing in this range, so there is no reason yet to pay more just because Turkey jumped.
- Update your calendar — Pakistan’s official price will not refresh until 18 September. Now. The update was expected this past Friday, but has been pushed back a week.
Why Prices Moved (and Other Changes)
Turkey’s price broke out because finished-steel prices strengthened, giving mills room to pay more for raw material. Iron ore fell over the same days, showing the rise came from steel demand, not raw-material cost. Pakistan’s official price stayed flat even as real cargo sales moved closer to it than usual, leaving buyers less room to negotiate below it. Middle East shipping risk grew further this weekend. A pipeline in Saudi Arabia reportedly shut down, and militant forces reportedly advanced near a key Red Sea shipping route. Both came too late Friday for markets to react yet.
What to Watch Next Week
- Watch whether shipping costs actually rise on Monday, following this weekend’s Middle East news.
- Watch for a second Turkish sale above $390 per tonne. That would confirm this week’s jump is a real trend, not a one-off.
- Watch for Pakistan’s delayed price update, now due 18 September instead of 11 September.
Plain-English Glossary
- Tonne — a metric ton, about 2,205 pounds — the unit scrap and steel are priced in.
- Official price — a price published daily or weekly by an independent market reporter, used industry-wide as a reference.
- Semi-finished steel — steel cast into basic shapes, like billet, that still needs rolling into a finished product such as rebar.
More detail: Watchlist Priorities.