As the annual summer slowdown comes to close in the coming weeks, wire rod buyers in the US are “hanging back” according to sources, waiting to see what the market trend looks like after Labor Day. For now, US domestic wire rod mills are largely keeping spot prices in the firm range of $25.25-$26.25 cwt. ($505-$525/nt or $556-$578/mt) ex-mill, with little to no dealmaking taking place underneath the range. But some sources say mills’ leverage could change if the import situation sustains.
Last week, mid-month totals for August fell far short of July’s total wire rod import permits (63,934 mt vs. 108,321 mt, respectively). But a surge in permits over the course of the week now put totals (as of August 24) at 117,534 mt. While unexpected, this shift in position availability has mills “concerned” according to sources, but it’s unclear just yet how that concern will translate into pricing policy once the market resumes activity in September.