While SteelOrbis had last week reported that Italian
rebar mills were hoping to raise their prices to at least €380/mt ex-works, during the past week they have increased their domestic
rebar quotations by €20/mt to €370-380/mt ($411-422/mt) ex-works in order to improve their profit margins. However, demand is still very weak, with very few negotiations observed. As a result, local
rebar mills are producing on an intermittent basis.
Concerning the export market, in recent weeks market sources reported that, due to the absence of the Algerian market - which absorbed between 70 and 80 percent of Italian
rebar exports in 2015 and 2016 - Italian producers were instead concluding sales to markets such as the US, Canada, Turkey, and to countries in South America and Central Africa. A few sources have told SteelOrbis that the release of
rebar import licenses in Algeria should happen "very soon", though most sources are very skeptical about this possibility.
€1 = $1.11