With inquiries and bookings of US import rebar starting to pick up after a summer of stagnancy, sources tell SteelOrbis that the gradual increase in offer prices is expected to continue as long as scrap prices remain strong. Dwindling rebar positions at US ports are also adding to the newly-revived demand, which was suspended while the US steel market as a whole waited for now-delayed results in the Section 232 investigation. According to the latest US import license data, only 67,098 mt in rebar import permits were recorded for July, and as of the first week of August, import permits totals have only reached 14,596 mt—of that August total, zero tonnage has come from Turkey, and the rest of the month should follow a similar lackluster trend.
By the end of last week, fresh inquiries led to Turkish rebar quotes in the range of $26.00-$27.00 cwt. ($520-$540/nt or $573-$595/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports. This week, offers for imported rebar in the US domestic market from Turkey are now in the range of $27.00-$28.00 cwt. ($540-$560/nt or $595-$617/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports, reflecting an increase of $1.00 cwt. ($20/nt or $22/mt) in the last week.