Steel Products Prices North America
Price Ranges & Indices: Mixed Market
Written by Brett Linton
March 26, 2019
Hot rolled prices were up $5 per ton this past week to $690 per ton. The averages continue to be negatively impacted by a couple of aggressive mills. We saw a little erosion on cold rolled and the lower end of the galvanized range. Galvalume was unchanged. Plate steel prices saw the gains measured last week disappear.
Here is how we see prices this week:
Hot Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $660-$720 per ton ($33.00/cwt-$36.00/cwt) with an average of $690 per ton ($34.50/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range increased by $10 per ton compared to one week ago, while the upper end remained unchanged. An interesting note to our readers, one-third of our responses reported HRC prices as being $700 per ton. Our overall average is up $5 per ton compared to last week. Our price momentum on hot rolled steel is Higher, meaning we expect prices to rise over the next 30 days.
Hot Rolled Lead Times: 2-6 weeks
Cold Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $800-$840 per ton ($40.00/cwt-$42.00/cwt) with an average of $820 per ton ($41.00/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range is down $10 per ton compared to last week, as is the upper end of our range. Our overall average is down $10 per ton compared to one week ago. Our price momentum on cold rolled steel continues to be at Higher, meaning we expect prices to rise over the next 30 days.
Cold Rolled Lead Times: 5-8 weeks
Galvanized Coil: SMU base price range is $41.00/cwt-$43.50/cwt ($820-$870 per ton) with an average of $42.25/cwt ($845 per ton) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range dropped $10 per ton compared to one week ago, while the upper end remained unchanged. Our overall average is down $5 per ton compared to last week. Our price momentum on galvanized steel continues to be Higher despite the small drop at the lower end of the range, meaning we expect prices to rise over the next 30 days.
Galvanized .060” G90 Benchmark: SMU price range is $898-$948 per net ton with an average of $923 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.
Galvanized Lead Times: 5-8 weeks
Galvalume Coil: SMU base price range is $41.50/cwt-$43.50/cwt ($830-$870 per ton) with an average of $42.50/cwt ($850 per ton) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. Both the lower and upper end of our ranges, as well as our average are unchanged compared to one week ago. We are seeing some unusual activity out of one mill that bears watching closely. However, until we get more details or price momentum on Galvalume, our direction remains Higher, meaning we expect prices to rise over the next 30 days.
Galvalume .0142” AZ50, Grade 80 Benchmark: SMU price range is $1,121-$1,161 per net ton with an average of $1,141 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.
Galvalume Lead Times: 5-7 weeks
Plate: SMU price range is $970-$1,000 per ton ($48.50/cwt-$50.00/cwt) with an average of $985 per ton ($49.25/cwt) FOB delivered to the customer’s facility. The lower end of our range rose by $10 per ton compared to one week ago, while the upper end gave back the $40 per ton it added last week. Our overall average is down $15 per ton compared to last week. Our price momentum on plate steel is Neutral, meaning we expect prices to remain steady over the next 30 days.
Plate Lead Times: 5-7 weeks
Brett Linton
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