In the US may experience a shortage of fittings amid rising demand in 2015

The Reinforcing Steel Institute (CrSi) predicts that the country's rebar consumption should reach 8.7 million tonnes in 2015, an increase of 8 percent over 2014. In addition, there is a possibility that supply will not be able to keep pace with the growth in demand.

According to Bob Risser, president of CrSi, the country's consumption of domestic and imported rebar reached 8.1 million tonnes in 2014, up from 7.5 million tonnes in 2013. In 2015, rebar consumption is projected to grow by 8 percent to 8.7 million tonnes.

Meanwhile, independent experts from Steel Alliance expressed concerns that the availability of fittings in warehouses will be at lower levels, as domestic factories in some regions of the country are planning to cut production in 2015. In addition, construction demand is expected to remain robust in 2015.

The blockade of the rebar trade with Mexico will only add to the problems. US imports of Mexican rebar fell to a low of 73 tonnes in November 2014, compared with an import volume of 28,179 tonnes in the same month last year. Turkish rebar imports to the US have dropped in the past couple of months, which is likely to change in the first quarter of 2015. According to the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), imports of rebar in the country climbed 19 percent overall in 2014. ISA is in talks with suppliers and plans to find more partners in early 2015.