Even though sources report that Turkish input costs are rising, the lack of demand in Turkey and the US has resulted in another week of stagnant import offer prices to the US. Higher scrap quotations in July resulted in an attempt by Turkish mills to raise their export wire rod prices, but US traders resisted the move. Similarly, recent upticks in Chinese billet prices to Turkey have not translated into higher Turkish wire rod prices because, as one source said, “nobody needs wire rod bad enough to pay a penny more.”
As such, offer prices for Turkish wire rod to the US are stable this week in the range of $21.50-$22.50 cwt. ($430-$450/nt or $474-$496/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports. US-based traders have not heard higher quotations in the last week, and according to many, they don’t expect to see the range move much in the coming weeks.