Steel Products Prices North America

Comparison Price Indices: Mixed Results

Written by John Packard

July 9, 2017

Flat rolled steel prices were mixed with SMU seeing increases in hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized (.060″ G90) and Galvalume. SMU took plate prices down $15 per ton. Platts saw prices as stable on all but cold rolled, which they saw down $5 per ton compared to the prior week. We had a shortened week to review pricing due to the Independence Day Holiday in the United States and Dominion Holiday in Canada.

SMU and Platts both have benchmark hot rolled averaging $610 per ton. Cold rolled was close at $800 SMU and $790 on Platts.

Plate prices cannot be compared one-on-one because SMU pricing is delivered to the customer, while Platts pricing is FOB Southeastern USA mill.

SMU Note: Galvanized prices include $78 in extras for a .060″ G90 product. Galvalume prices include $291 in extras for a .0142” AZ50 Grade 80 product.

FOB points for each index:

SMU: Domestic Mill, East of the Rockies.
SteelBenchmarker: Domestic Mill, East of the Mississippi.
Platts: Northern Indiana Domestic Mill.

Plate price FOB points are different for each of the indexes:

SMU: FOB Delivered to the Customer (includes freight)
Platts: FOB Southeaster Mill (does not include freight)

Note that SteelBenchmarker produces numbers twice per month. On the weeks they produce numbers, we will include them in the average. The weeks where they do not produce numbers (NA = not available) we will not include their outdated numbers in the CPI average.

John Packard

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