Steel Products Prices North America
SMU Price Ranges & Indices: Down Another $10
Written by Brett Linton
July 28, 2020
Steel Market Update’s check of the market this week shows flat rolled and plate steel prices falling by a further $10, taking the benchmark hot rolled price down to $450 per ton. Most respondents expressed doubts that the price increase announced last week by the integrated mills will gain any traction, especially since the minimills have opted not to follow suit with price hikes of their own, at least so far. SMU’s Price Momentum Indicators remain at Neutral while the market sorts out the latest developments.
Here is how we see prices this week:
Hot Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $420-$480 per ton ($21.00-$24.00/cwt) with an average of $450 per ton ($22.50/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. Both the lower and upper ends of our range declined $10 per ton compared to one week ago. Our overall average is down $10 per ton over last week. Our price momentum on hot rolled steel is now at Neutral until the market establishes a clear direction.
Hot Rolled Lead Times: 3-4 weeks
Cold Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $620-$660 per ton ($31.00-$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 declined $10 per ton compared to last week. Our overall average is down $10 per ton over one week ago. Our price momentum on cold rolled steel is now at Neutral until the market establishes a clear direction.
Cold Rolled Lead Times: 4-8 weeks
Galvanized Coil: SMU price range is $600-$660 per ton ($30.00-$33.00/cwt) with an average of $630 per ton ($31.50/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range decreased $20 per ton compared to one week ago, while the upper end remained the same. Our overall average declined $10 per ton over last week. Our price momentum on galvanized steel is now at Neutral until the market establishes a clear direction.
Galvanized .060” G90 Benchmark: SMU price range is $669-$729 per net ton with an average of $699 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.
Galvanized Lead Times: 4-6 weeks
Galvalume Coil: SMU price range is $650-$680 per ton ($32.50-$34.00/cwt) with an average of $665 per ton ($33.25/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range remained unchanged compared to last week, while the upper end decreased $10 per ton. Our overall average is down $5 per ton over one week ago. Our price momentum on Galvalume steel is at Neutral until the market establishes a clear direction.
Galvalume .0142” AZ50, Grade 80 Benchmark: SMU price range is $941-$971 per net ton with an average of $956 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.
Galvalume Lead Times: 5-8 weeks
Plate: SMU price range is $570-$610 per ton ($28.50-$30.50/cwt) with an average of $590 per ton ($29.50/cwt) FOB delivered to the customer’s facility. The lower end of our range decreased $20 per ton compared to one week ago, while the upper end remained unchanged. Our overall average is down $10 per ton over last week. Our price momentum on plate steel is at Neutral until the market establishes a clear direction.
Plate Lead Times: 3-6 weeks
SMU Note: Below is a graphic showing our hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized, Galvalume and plate price history. This data is available here on our website with our interactive pricing tool. If you need help navigating the website or need to know your login information, contact us at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com.
Brett Linton
Read more from Brett LintonLatest in Steel Products Prices North America
CRU: Longs pricing trends diverge in North, South America
Most longs prices in the US were unchanged this month, except for rebar, which declined by $1.50/cwt ($30/short ton) m/m. While end-use demand is stable, inventories are well-stocked, keeping purchases limited. Domestic availability is sufficient to meet current demand, hindering the appetite for imported material. Meanwhile, prices for scrap remained under pressure in June, with […]
Nucor cuts plate prices by $125/ton, cites ongoing competition
Nucor Corp. announced that its plate mill group would cut prices for as-rolled, discrete, and normalized plate with the opening of its August order book.
Nucor cuts HR price for fourth straight week
Nucor lowered its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil by another $10 per short ton (st) for the first week of July. The steelmaker said in a letter to customers on Monday that its CSP base price for the week will be $670/st for all of its sheet mills with the exception of California Steel Industries (CSI).
Cliffs sets $720/ton HR price with opening of August books
Cleveland-Cliffs on Tuesday announced its monthly hot-rolled (HR) coil price of $720 per short ton (st) with the official opening of its August order book. The rate is down from last month’s price of $800/st.
CRU: Demand weakness continues to weigh on global sheet markets
Demand has remained persistently weak across the globe for sheet steel, weighing on prices. US HR coil prices fell the furthest this week as high-volume, low-priced deals were transacted as mills looked to fill order books and competed with one another amid relative demand weakness. Meanwhile, European prices were also down due to low demand […]