Sources tell SteelOrbis that many US buyers of import wire rod are in general staying on the sidelines amidst the current tariff uncertainty, waiting to make significant orders for future arrivals until they can be reasonably sure those orders won’t be hit with higher tariffs before arriving at US ports. For now, there is enough availability of already-arrived import wire rod at the ports to supplement higher-priced US domestic material, but September license data already indicates that supplies are dwindling.
Preliminary census data for US wire rod imports show 98,207 mt arriving in August, while September’s import permit number only reaches 69,927 mt as of Sept. 26. It should be noted, however, that August’s license data was much higher, but a mysterious 36,535 mt from Turkey plunged to 229.4 mt in the preliminary census numbers. Sources say the tonnage was likely diverted after the Trump administration imposed an additional 25 percent Section 232 tariff on steel imports from Turkey on top of the existing 25 percent, which went into effect Aug. 13.
Future arrival offers, meanwhile, remain steady week-on-week. Offers for imported wire rod in the US domestic market from Germany still around $36.50 cwt. ($730/nt or $805/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports, and offers from Greece still ranging from $36.00-$37.00 cwt. ($720-$740/nt or $794-$816/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports. Offers from Brazil, meanwhile, are trending at $35.00-$36.00 cwt. ($700-$720/nt or $772-$794/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports.