US rebar prices continued to hold steady following the Memorial Day holiday, but lower scrap costs in June could soften prices in the coming weeks, sources said Tuesday.
Domestic rebar pricing has climbed in recent weeks as mills have hiked prices on higher raw material costs, but given expectations that obsolete grades of scrap will decline $20-$50/lt during the June buy, the market could see a reversal, buyers said.
"If scrap keeps dropping, I expect (rebar) to go down," said one Midwest fabricator.
Platts on Tuesday maintained its weekly Midwest rebar assessment at $560-$585/st ex-works.
Demand in the Southeast is not strong enough on its own to support higher rebar pricing, said a fabricator in the region. Mills are starting to show more interest in making deals to secure large orders, he said.
"I get the feeling that the mills are worried prices went up a little too much," he said. "Scrap continues to go down, [import] prices are going down, iron ore is going down, and the demand just isn't there in the Southeast."
Platts on Tuesday maintained its daily US rebar assessment for the Southeast at $555-$570/st ex-works.
