Reinforcing steel bar prices have decreased in the United States due to downward pressure from falling raw material costs and some reports of slower market activity, market sources said.
Fastmarkets AMM's price assessment for domestic rebar stood at $34.50-35.50 per hundredweight ($690-710 per short ton) fob mill on Wednesday April 17, down by 2.4% from $35.25-36.50 per cwt two weeks earlier. At the same time, Fastmarkets' assessment for imported rebar narrowed upward to $685-700 per ton cfr Port of Houston from $670-700 per ton previously.Scrap, other factors undercut price momentum but upside seenRebar prices had been holding firm in early April despite the failure of seasonal demand to kick in and provide a widespread boost to the market, with sources noting at the time that prices were expected to remain steady in the face of a possible decline in the April ferrous scrap market. But with Chicago shredded auto scrap settling $23 per ton lower at the conclusion of April's trade and mixed signals on demand emerging from the market, spot prices in the US rebar market have receded."The upward...