Continuing on the downtrend seen for the last few weeks, import wire rod offers from China to the US dropped another $0.75 cwt. ($17/mt or $15/nt) in the last week to the range of $29.25-$30.25 cwt. ($645-$667/mt $585-$605/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports. Traders report that interest in Chinese rod is increasing with every drop in prices, while subsequently stagnating interest in Turkish wire rod offers, which show no sign of adjusting to remain competitive. Turkish wire rod offer prices are still in the range of $32.00-$33.00 cwt. ($705-$728/mt or $640-$660/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports--unchanged from last week--and sources tell SteelOrbis that the differential between Chinese and Turkish prices is too much to spur Turkish mills to action.
Meanwhile, the Chinese trend has spurred US domestic mills into action, although not with pricing policies. According to sources, US mills are already making preliminary injury surveys of Chinese wire rod imports into the US, which could mean an antidumping suit in the near future. Until then, US mills are still offering wire rod in the spot range of $33.00-$34.00 cwt. ($728-$750/mt or $660-$680/nt) ex-mill--reflecting no change from last week--although most transactions are reportedly taking place at the higher end of the range.