With the promise of a potentially sideways trend for scrap next month, US wire rod mills are still holding tight to current spot prices in the range of $37.00-$38.00 cwt. ($816-$838/mt or $740-$760/nt) ex-mill--unchanged from last week. However, increasing pressure from customers over the lack of response to February's $25-$30/long ton drop in shredded scrap prices has led some mills to offer quiet deals to certain customers. Sources tell SteelOrbis that in general, such deals are not for more than $1.00 cwt. ($22/mt or $20/nt) less than the general spot range, but with demand for wire rod not exactly spectacular at the moment, and the slim possibility that scrap prices could come down slightly next month (if export prices don't pick up), US mills might have to extend their deals to a wider swath of their customer base sooner rather than later.
As for imports, the power shortage situation in Turkey proved to not be as dire as assumed, although wire rod offer prices to the US have remained up. US traders are still offering--and booking--wire rod in the range of $33.50-$34.50 cwt. ($739-$761/mt or $670-$690/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports, reflecting no change in the last week, and with scrap prices stable in Turkey for the time being, wire rod prices for domestic and export consumption are not expected to change in the next week or so.