Although the US import rebar market has been quiet since the Trump administration announced sweeping steel tariffs earlier this month, sources tell SteelOrbis that they are getting “preliminary indications” of new import offers, although nothing is “set in stone” while several countries apply for exemptions to the Sections 232 tariffs.
Adding 25 percent to the last-heard offers for imported rebar in the US domestic market from Turkey would put prices at $38.75 cwt. ($775/nt or $854/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports, which is slightly under current US domestic rebar spot prices that are now pushing $40.00 cwt. ($800/nt or $882/mt) ex-mill. Some sources think US rebar mills will continue to announce price increases, especially if US domestic scrap prices maintain an upward trend, and one trader source said, “the higher domestic mills go, the better for import interest.”