Buying activity for imported flat-rolled steel might slow in the United States, due to deep uncertainty around steel prices created by the Section 232 tariffs and quotas.
Prices for imported flat-rolled steel are in a wide range, with some countries making offers inclusive of 232 tariffs while others did not account for the trade duties.Buyers and sellers seemed unable to agree on the direction for prices and were largely unwilling to take the risk associated with imports - which carry a longer lead time than domestic material - in a market where prices are often volatile and where new trade regulations have made them doubly so."There is no reward in purchasing at these numbers," one US East Coast service center source said, echoing the sentiment of others - primarily buyers - who think that US steel prices are too high and due for a correction in the next few months.Trader and mill sources, in contrast, said it was unlikely that US prices would correct before the end of the year, given the threat of quotas."There is going to...