보기: Market Movers Americas, June 27-July 1: Mixed outlooks for commodities, supply in the Americas

In this week's Market Movers: The Mexican steel market foresees a tough third quarter, Latin American polyethylene market poises to see strong competition between China and the US, and high temperatures drive up US Northwest power prices.

Starting in metals, the Mexican steel market is bracing for a bearish third quarter, as prices are expected to nosedive on lackluster demand and excess supply. Flat and long steel prices have been dropping for several consecutive weeks, and the speed and severity of the falls have concerned market participants from mills to end-users. From mid-April to mid-June, flats and longs steel prices in Mexico plunged about 20% and 10%, respectively. With exports to US limited and the domestic market without signs of recovery, the bets are on how low steel prices could go. The main concerns center on inventories losing value and market players experiencing losses across the chain.

In the polyethylene market, Latin American importers are expecting strong supply competition between the US and China in the coming weeks. US Gulf Coast prices could soften for July, though China has held competitive values in most grades. Still, logistics continue to be the defining factor. From the US, shipment delays could reach up to 10 weeks, while from Asia, the delivery time varies from a minimum of 50 days from the Southeast region to 80 days from China. This brings us to our social media question of the week: What will decide the main suppliers of polyethylene products to Latin America in the near future: a price battle, or delivery times? Tweet us your thoughts.

Summer is finally hitting the US Northwest and driving up power prices, which have been low due to a swell of precipitation in recent weeks leading to more hydro generation. Heat advisories are in effect through the night of June 27 with temperatures forecast as high as 105 degrees Fahrenheit. BPA peakload, which has trended below year-ago levels, is forecast to reach 7.18 gigawatts June 27, 12% above the month-to-date peakload average. In reaction, Mid-C on-peak day-ahead prices jumped 315% day on day last Friday.

Take a moment to examine the approaches to steel indexation used across different regions of the world on our new Special Report Changing gears: Steel's shift to price indexation. Visit the address displayed on your screen. Thanks for kicking off your Monday with us, and have a great week ahead.