Steel Products Prices North America
April Imports Forecast to Exceed 3.5 Million Tons
Written by John Packard
April 15, 2014
The U.S. Department of Commerce released license data through Tuesday, April 15th for imported steel scheduled to arrive into the United States during the month of April. Based on this early license data (knowing it can be misleading) we are projecting total steel imports will exceed the 3.5 million net tons forecast for March. Our forecast for April is currently calling for imports to reach 3.8 million tons.
The areas which are currently suggesting increasing imports are: OCTG (oil country tubular goods), hot rolled and cold rolled. Galvalume imports are also forecast to be quite high from a recent historical perspective.
Below are the various forecasts Steel Market Update made for the month of March based on license data. The next step will be for the release of Preliminary Census data which will provide a more accurate number for the month of March.
John Packard
Read more from John PackardLatest in Steel Products Prices North America
SMU Price Ranges: Sheet floor holds as market debates upside
Our average HR coil price increased $5/short ton from last week, marking a second consecutive week of modest gains. Market participants generally attributed the increase to...
Thin demand keeps plate prices hovering at lowest levels since February
Participants in the domestic plate market say spot prices appear to have hit the floor, and they continue to linger there. They say demand for steel remains thin, with plate products no exception.
SMU Price Ranges: HR crawls back to $800/ton
SMU’s HR price stands at $800/st on average, up $5/st from last week. The modest gain came as the low end of our range firmed, and despite the high end of our range declining slightly.
SMU successfully completes IOSCO review
SMU has successfully completed an external review of all our prices. The review has concluded that they algin with principles set by the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO).
Domestic plate prices could heat up despite so-so demand, market sources say
Some sources also speculated that plate could see further price increases thanks to modest but steady demand, lower imports, mill maintenance outages, and end markets less immediately affected by tariff-related disruptions.