US import wire rod prices from Turkey trended up again this week, bolstered by strong scrap prices in the US and Turkey. Traders are reportedly taking a measured approach to translating higher Turkish mill offers to sales prices to customers in the US, and sources say gradual upticks are expected in the near term.
This week, Turkish offers of imported product in the US domestic market are now in the range of $22.00-$23.00 cwt. ($440-$460/nt or $485-$507/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports, reflecting an increase of $0.50 cwt. ($10/nt or $11/mt) since last week. Sources say positions are also still available for slightly lower prices, thanks to the influx in October that exceeded September wire rod import totals: current US import data show 118,214 mt in September (census data) compared to 130,363 mt in October (license data) and so, far (as of November 8), 40,545 mt in November.