Although US domestic wire rod mills are trying to keep a firm grip on spot prices in the face of low demand and two consecutive months of scrap price decreases, sources tell SteelOrbis that the high end of last week's general range of $33.50-$34.50 cwt. ($739-$761/mt or $670-$690/nt) ex-mill has dropped down to $34.00 cwt. ($750/mt or $680/nt) ex-mill, with the low end feeling pressure from large customers. Overall, purchasing activity is tepid, giving even more leverage to customers actually willing to book decent-sized orders. Forecasts for the rest of the month point to further erosion of the spot price range, with the possibility of a scrap price increase being the only thing to stop the downslide. However, the outlook for June scrap prices is still mixed, therefore an increase--even a small one--is by no means guaranteed.
Demand is equally low for imports, although Chinese wire rod offer prices have apparently not found a bottom quite yet. After dropping about $0.25 cwt. ($5.50/mt or $5/nt) in the last week, Chinese offers are now in the range of $29.00-$30.00 cwt. ($639-$661/mt or $580-$600/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports, inspiring a minor uptick in inquiry activity, according to traders. Meanwhile, Turkish offers are still being mostly ignored in the US market, and prices are level at 30.50-$31.50 cwt. ($672-$694/mt or $610-$630/nt) DDP loaded truck in US Gulf ports--unchanged since last week.