On Wednesday, the Independent Steel Alliance (ISA) released the results of its survey of independent rebar fabricators in the US and Canada. The poll was sent to nearly 300 independent rebar fabricators throughout both countries and was conducted by the ISA, a purchasing cooperative launched on January 1, 2013. Chris Casey, Ph.D., Executive Director of the ISA, said "It's important to have a sense of how the independent fabricators perceive the market, and their position in the market."
The results show that nearly 80 percent of respondents indicated their outlook for the rebar market over the coming 12 months as either neutral (45.45 percent) or bullish (34.09 percent).
When asked about rebar costs, half of the respondents said they expect their purchasing costs to increase over the next 12 months, which could put additional pressure on margins. Over one in three respondents (36.4 percent) said they expect their selling prices of rebar to go up as well, while 43 percent said their selling prices will remain the same in the coming year.
A survey responded in California said: "Even though the market is still tight, it is definitely not getting any worse right now."
Meanwhile, a Texas-based fabricator noted "With the threat of increasing rebar costs, coupled with increasing overhead costs in fabrication, it is getting harder and harder to compete against mill-owned fabricators and make a profit."