Northern European wire rod prices remain unchanged this week amid a sluggish market, with suppliers indicating their intention to increase prices in the coming weeks to revive trade in the region.
"The market has been almost frozen in the last few months and everyone is losing money, so we will raise the prices of our finished products," a buyer from the Netherlands stated. "We have already offered our customers an increase of €30/tonne for drawing-quality wire rod and €40/tonne for mesh-quality material.
"Domestic transaction prices for drawing-quality wire rod currently stand at €650/tonne ($702/t) ex-works, while mesh-grade wire rod is priced at €660/t. Producers are asking for an average of €680/t ex-works for mesh-quality rod.
The weak scrap market in Europe, with prices expected to fall in March, is also influencing the wire rod market. German old thick scrap sort 3 is at €350/t, new scrap sort 2/8 at €350/t, and E40 shredded scrap at €365/t. In Austria, new scrap sort 2/8 is at €350/t, with old thick scrap sort 3 at €360/t.
Import offers from outside the EU, heard at €620-630/t cfr Rotterdam, are considered too expensive to impact the European wire rod market. Italian wire rod prices are relatively stable, with drawing quality between €680-680/t delivered, though facing competition from imports from Northern Africa and Europe.
As suppliers aim to revive trade and regain profitability, the proposed price increases for Northern European wire rod will be closely watched by market participants in the coming weeks.
