Although import offer prices for Turkish rebar in the US have not moved since last week, traders tell SteelOrbis that Turkish mills are eager to fill as many orders as they can to arrive in the US before the April 18 ruling in the US’ trade case against them. However, traders aren’t exactly rushing to place orders, as many already have ample stock of Turkish rebar that was bought at slightly higher prices--they’d rather work on reducing that inventory. So for now, demand for the current offer price range of $30.50-$31.50 cwt. ($610-$630/nt or $672-$694/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports isn’t exactly robust. As for the US’ other target in the rebar trade case, Mexican offers are also unchanged in the last week, at $32.00-$33.00 cwt. ($640-$660/nt or $705-$728/mt) FOB loaded rail car. However, traders report that Mexican mills are more than willing to negotiate, indicating a general downward trend.
The US domestic rebar market, meanwhile, is also quiet this week, with mills sitting on the spot price range of $33.50-$34.50 cwt. ($670-$690/nt or $739-$760/mt) ex-mill for now. Looking toward next month, sources tell SteelOrbis that rebar prices will be influenced by scrap whether mills officially acknowledge it or not, and unfortunately for them, early predictions are pointing to another downtrend.