Sources continue to report “extremely” tight supply in the US domestic wire rod market, with some buyers booking whatever tons they can get without regard to the price. However, most in the market see current wire rod spot prices as a “high mark,” and despite the supply situation, sources say it would take a “massive scrap increase” or some other major market shift for mills to announce another price increase.
At the same time, sources do not foresee wire rod prices dropping in the near-term, even if scrap trends sideways or down in the coming months. As such, US domestic wire rod spot prices are expected to hover around the current range of $53.00-$55.00 cwt. ($1,168-$1,213/mt or $1,060-$1,100/nt) ex-mill, unchanged week-on-week.