UK based MEPS said that "US mills' utilization rates have crept up steadily over the last month and now stand above 47.5%. The recent dire market conditions appear to have bottomed and expectations are for a steady, albeit slow, recovery. Service centers report that business activity continues to be low but inventories are now generally in balance with the reduced level of demand. Imports into the US are not a factor in the market and licence applications from overseas suppliers are still registering month on month declines. Most major steelmakers have now announced a series of transaction price advances for strip mill products, following a leading move by AK Steel at the beginning of June. The increases are effective with new orders scheduled for delivery in July."

It added that Canadian transaction values, however, are still falling. The escalation in the strength of the local currency versus the US dollar is making the country more attractive to US mills, although offshore imports remain virtually absent. Domestic producers have reported a couple of weeks of modest improvement in their order position. This is, ostensibly, inventory replenishment which suggests destocking may be near completion. However, the consensus amongst distributors is that market conditions remain very sluggish and the continued automobile closures and shutdowns have damaged any possibility of a summer upturn. A slight pick up is envisaged in the September or October timeframe.

MEPS said that despite steady growth in imports and domestic output, the price trend for Chinese flat products has turned positive, supported by a strengthening of real demand and traders restocking ahead of further perceived increases. The recent sharp production cuts in Japan have helped to reduce inventories. Moreover, a small recovery has been noted in demand from car and electronic goods makers, as well as overseas customers. Stocks of strip mill products held by local steelmakers and distributors, as end of April, fell to below the 4 million tonne mark for the first time in two years. Meanwhile, quayside inventories of imported flat products dropped by 13.1% in the same time frame. The mills hope to be able to gradually lift output in the autumn.