Traders are still holding tight to their offer prices for US import wire rod from Turkey even though their offers from Turkish mills fell again this week. Sources tell SteelOrbis that the downtrend in prices is not expected to let up anytime soon, especially considering the scrap situation in Turkey. As such, offers are still in last week’s range of $25.50-$26.50 cwt. ($510-$530/nt or $562-$584/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports.
While dropping import offers are good for wire rod buyers in the US, the trend is making things more difficult for US domestic wire rod mills, who took a firm stance with order book in the last days of June, ensuring the last of the June increase went through. As such, spot prices are now in the range of $27.50-$28.50 cwt. ($550-$570/nt or $606-$628/mt) ex-mill. However, the chances of July’s $1.50 cwt. ($30/nt or $33/mt) increase making it into the market are still slim.