Steel Products Prices North America

SMU Price Ranges & Indices: Holiday Lull

January 2, 2018

Flat rolled steel prices barely budged over the past couple of weeks as steel buyers and sellers took a break for the Holidays culminating in the calendar flipping over to 2018. When we asked one commercial manager of a steel mill to comment about pricing earlier today we were told, “Gotta let the market percolate a little more. Not everyone is a believer coming back into the office after the holidays… Spot is going to run up.”

We also spoke with the owner of a medium size service center who told us “nothing going on” and wondered how the crazy weather would impact steel production as in the past steel mills have had issues running blast furnaces in the cold weather.

Here is how we see prices this week:

Hot Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $620-$660 per ton ($31.00/cwt-$33.00/cwt) with an average of $640 per ton ($32.00/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. Both the lower and upper ends of our range remained the same compared to one week ago. Our overall average is unchanged compared to last week. Our price momentum on hot rolled steel is now pointing to Higher indicating prices are expected to increase over the next 30-60 days.

Hot Rolled Lead Times: 3-5 weeks

Cold Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $800-$850 per ton ($40.00/cwt-$42.50/cwt) with an average of $825 per ton ($41.25/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. Both the lower and upper ends of our range increased $10 per ton compared to last week. Our overall average is up $10 per ton compared to one week ago. Our price momentum on cold rolled steel is now pointing to Higher indicating prices are expected to increase over the next 30-60 days.

Cold Rolled Lead Times: 5-7 weeks

Galvanized Coil: SMU base price range is $39.50/cwt-$42.00/cwt ($790-$840 per ton) with an average of $40.75/cwt ($815 per ton) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range increased $10 per ton compared to one week ago, while the upper end remained the same. Our overall average is up $5 per ton compared to last week. Our price momentum on galvanized steel is now pointing to Higher indicating prices are expected to increase over the next 30-60 days.

Galvanized .060” G90 Benchmark: SMU price range is $876-$926 per net ton with an average of $991 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.

Galvanized Lead Times: 3-10 weeks

Galvalume Coil: SMU base price range is $40.00/cwt-$42.50/cwt ($800-$850 per ton) with an average of $41.25/cwt ($825 per ton) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range increased $20 per ton compared to last week, while the upper end remained the same. Our overall average is up $10 per ton compared to one week ago. Our price momentum on Galvalume steel is now pointing to Higher indicating prices are expected to increase over the next 30-60 days.

Galvalume .0142” AZ50, Grade 80 Benchmark: SMU price range is $1,091-$1,141 per net ton with an average of $1,116 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.

Galvalume Lead Times: 6-8 weeks

Plate: SMU price range is $650-$750 per ton ($32.50/cwt-$37.50/cwt) with an average of $700 per ton ($35.00/cwt) FOB delivered. Both the lower and upper ends of our range remained the same compared to one week ago. Our overall average is unchanged compared to last week. Our price momentum on plate steel is now pointing to Higher indicating prices are expected to increase over the next 30-60 days.

Plate Lead Times: 4-6 weeks

SMU Note: Below is a graphic showing our hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized, Galvalume, and plate price history. To use the graph’s interactive capabilities, you must view it on our website here. If you need help navigating the website or need to know your login information, contact us at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com or 800-432-3475.