While official rebar pricing has not changed since last week, mill-affiliated fabricators are snatching up product for almost $1.00 cwt. ($22/mt or $20/nt) less.
Prices for domestic rebar are still generally being offered at $29.50 cwt. to $30.00 cwt. ($650/mt to $661/mt or $590/nt to $600/nt) ex-mill, with spot offers heard at about $0.50 cwt. ($11/mt or $10/nt) less. However, mill-affiliated fabricators have been getting deals at about $1.00 cwt. less than official asking prices. Weak demand from a continuously sluggish construction sector is mostly responsible for the flexibility of rebar offers, but pricing is expected to firm up next month if shredded scrap prices go up as predicted.
Rebar offers from overseas have remained quiet over the week, as Turkish rebar pricing remains too high to attract much interest. Even so, prices are expected to rise next week, in response to recent spikes in billet demand and pricing. Current offers are still in the range of $28.00 cwt. to $29.00 cwt. ($617/mt to $639/mt or $560/nt to $580/nt) FOB duty-paid loaded truck in US Gulf ports, but the trend is now slightly up.
Across the border, Mexican prices have leveled out after dropping for two straight weeks, with offers remaining in the range of $26.50 cwt. to $27.50 cwt. ($617/mt to $639/mt or $560/nt to $580/nt) delivered to US border states. However, the billet situation in Mexico is paralleling that of Europe, with both demand and prices surging. Mexican mills want to keep their product competitive with domestic US rebar, but there is a chance they will raise prices slightly to compensate for higher material costs.
