Wire rod industry sources in the United States expect recently announced mill price increases to be accepted, although the domestic market remains flat for now.
Fastmarkets AMM's assessment for industrial quality low-carbon rod held at $39.25-41.25 per hundredweight ($785-825 per short ton) on Wednesday November 14, and imported wire rod was steady at $744-762 per short cfr port of Houston.Scrap gains, mill backlogs trigger increaseA second consecutive month of increased shredded scrap costs and strong mill backlogs will likely result in little pushback on the $30-per-ton ($1.50-per-cwt) price increases announced by domestic mills Nucor Corp, Optimus Steel, Commercial Metals Co and Keystone Steel & Wire, industry participants said. "Scrap prices and ocean vessel rates are moving up," one US trader said. "Therefore, the mills have some room to move up. I expect another increase in mid-first quarter."Fastmarkets AMM's price assessment for shredded scrap in Chicago moved to $355 per gross ton for November, up by $30 from September deals.Furthermore, scrap prices should remain robust for the remainder of the year, Jefferies analysts wrote in an October 31 research...