No significant price movements have been reported in the US rebar market this week, but there are indications that spot prices could possibly soften.
After dropping $0.50 cwt. ($11/mt or $10/nt) in our last report, spot prices for US domestic rebar are stable this week, but SteelOrbis has learned that most transactions are being concluded on the low end of the current $35.50-$36.50 cwt. ($783-$805/mt or $710-$730/nt) ex-mill spot range-indicating that another slight drop could be imminent. In fact, according to one Gulf Coast distributor, some spot deals are already occurring below the aforementioned range, but for the time being, they are few and far between.
Domestic prices could very well be susceptible to attractive offers south of the border, which have remained in the range of $32.50-$33.50 cwt. ($717-$739/mt or $650-$670/nt) duty paid FOB delivered to US border states. Mexican mills continue to watch US rebar prices movements with hawk-like intensity, following each unofficial dip in US prices with similar drops of their own. If US prices indeed soften in the near-term, Mexican mills will undoubtedly follow.
As for overseas offers, Turkish rebar mills have responded to a slight uptrend in their local prices with slightly higher import offers to the US. Sales prices of Turkish rebar in the US have only increased $0.50 cwt. in the last week, bringing offers into the range of $32.50-$33.50 cwt. ($717-$739/mt or $650-$670/nt) duty paid FOB loaded truck in US Gulf ports. However, US interest in Turkish rebar--and the long lead times such orders entail--continues to be slow, and higher prices will likely continue that trend.
Current shipments of Turkish rebar into the US, on the other hand, are booming. According to SteelOrbis' latest Notable Shipments report, over 20,000 mt of Turkish rebar came into Gulf Coast ports between April 7-9, helping Turkey to become the US' number one source of imported rebar this month (surpassing long-time placeholder Mexico).