It did not come as a surprise that German ferrous scrap prices dropped in May after reaching an all-time high in April. During the last market survey, scrap dealers were already certain that prices would eventually fall – and significantly. But when the plunge came in May, some market participants were surprised by the extent of the decrease, since there had been few signs of an impending collapse at the turn of the month.
The cause of the price collapse – as is almost always the case for larger price movements – can be found on the export market to Turkey. In mid-April, Turkish scrap consumers had already started to put pressure on import prices and they then started increasingly to withdraw from the market. This was also due in part to the celebrations marking the end of Ramadan at the beginning of May, but even after these were over, the deep-sea market remained quiet....
