Steel Products Prices North America

Comparison Price Indices: Sideways with Slight Upward Bias
Written by John Packard
August 17, 2014
Spreads between the indexes are beginning to narrow as the market has been trending sideways (with a slight upward bias) for a number of weeks. Benchmark hot rolled numbers were up $2 per ton due to SteelBenchmarker reporting new numbers this past week (SteelBenchmarker only reports prices twice per month). The average of all the indices followed by Steel Market Update is $678 per ton ($33.90/cwt).
The cold rolled average increased by $3 per ton based on the $7 per ton move by CRU and $2 per ton by SteelBenchmarker.
Galvanized was up an average of $5 per ton due to the $10 per ton movement by SMU. Galvalume remained steady for the week.
Plate prices dropped an average of $7 per ton as both CRU and SteelBenchmarker lowered their plate indices.
FOB Points for each index:
SMU: Domestic Mill, East of the Rockies.
CRU: Midwest Mill, East of the Rockies.
SteelBenchmarker: Domestic Mill, East of the Mississippi.
Platts: Northern Indiana Domestic Mill.

John Packard
Read more from John PackardLatest in Steel Products Prices North America

CRU: Q3 will be the lowest point in current sheet price cycle
CRU Principal Analyst Shankhadeep Mukherjee expects a restocking cycle for steel sheet products in most parts of the world due to either low inventories or seasonally stronger demand.

CRU: US rebar and wire rod prices rise alongside S232 increase
CRU Senior Steel Analyst Alexandra Anderson discusses current market and pricing dynamics for long steel products in the US.

SMU Price Ranges: Sheet and plate steady ahead of Independence Day
Sheet and plate prices were little changed in the shortened week ahead of Independence Day, according to SMU’s latest check of the market.

Nucor maintains plate prices, opens August order book
Nucor aims to keep plate prices flat again with the opening of its August order book.

Nucor CSP remains level at $900/ton
Nucor maintained its weekly list price for hot-rolled (HR) coil this week, following two consecutive increases.