With continuous winter weather hampering demand in several regions of the US and downtrending scrap putting pressure on finished steel prices, the US domestic wire rod market is increasingly vulnerable to softening. Already, sources tell SteelOrbis that mills are only able to book at the top end of the current spot range--$33.50-$34.50 cwt. ($670-$690/nt or $739-$761/mt) ex-mill--in rare cases, while the bottom end of the range is becoming more available to medium-sized customers and order sizes. By next week, the general range could adjust downward by around $0.50 cwt. ($10/nt or $11/mt). The only market factor working in US mills’ favor is the import market.
With Chinese offers out of the picture, Turkish wire rod mills seem unwilling to bend from their current offer range of $30.50-$31.50 cwt. ($610-$630/nt or $672-$694/mt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports. Because booking activity in the US for Turkish wire rod is decent, any uptick in offer prices will be gradual. However, as soon as the final margins in the trade case against Chinese wire rod are set, traders believe Turkish mills will edge offers closer to US domestic spots.