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    Hot Rolled Futures: Prices Gap Higher in Concert with Announced Mill Price Increases

    Written by Jack Marshall


    The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC), busheling scrap (BUS), and financial futures markets was written by Jack Marshall of Crunch Risk LLC. Here is how he saw trading over the past week:

    HR futures activity, 11,900 ST traded this past week, had been relatively quiet until yesterday afternoon when prices “gapped” higher. This move could have been in response to announced mill price increase announcements and higher prices being paid for scrap. All week participants had been bid last value ($490 ST[$24.50cwt]) for May’16 through Dec’16.   The futures curve May’16 out through Cal’17 was basically settled flat @ $490 ST. On Friday Jan’17 and Mar’17 both traded @ $490 ST[$24.50cwt] on 600 ST/mo.

    Jakc Marshall, SMU Contrubutor

    Jack Marshall

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    Nucor increases spot HR to $1,240/ton

    Nucor said on Monday, Oct. 12, that its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil will be $1,240 per short ton (st) this week, a $10/st increase from a week earlier. The CSP for HR coil from California Steel Industries (CSI) on the West Coast will be $1,305/st, up $15/st from the prior week. Nucor is still offering lead times of three to five weeks, according to the letter to customers. You can track mill price announcements on our website. Steel Market Update (SMU) published a weekly price assessment on Tuesday, Oct. 6, showing HR coil prices averaging $1,270/st, up $10/st from the previous week. We will update our prices on the evening of Tuesday, Oct. 13.

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