As predicted by SteelOrbis last week, some US domestic rebar mills have raised their rebar prices, with other mills expected to follow suit. The $1.00 cwt. ($20/nt or $22/mt) price increases announced by Nucor and Commercial Metals Company (CMC) in the current week, came earlier than sources predicted—most believed it would be announced after US domestic scrap prices settle up in March as expected. One source said the reason for the early announcement might be that mills want to raise prices even higher, and they’re splitting the amount between two announcements: one before scrap settles, and one after.
Regardless of whether another increase is on the horizon, sources say there is little to no resistance in the market for this increase. US domestic rebar offers are already reflecting the increase, with asking prices now in the range of $35.50-$36.50 cwt. ($710-$730/nt or $783-$805/mt) ex-mill in the Midwest, and $37.00-$38.00 cwt. ($740-$760/nt or $816-$838/mt) ex-mill on the East Coast.