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    SMU Price Ranges & Indices: Not Much Change

    Written by Brett Linton


    The benchmark price for hot rolled remained unchanged at around $650 per ton, according to Steel Market Update’s check of the market this week, even as the mills worked to collect the price increases announced earlier in the month. Other flat rolled products saw a modest increase. Begging the question: Is the upward price momentum beginning to slow? Forty percent of the respondents to SMU’s questionnaire this week said they believe prices are peaking. Almost all see the HR price leveling out somewhere south of $700 in the next 30-60 days. SMU’s Price Momentum Indicators continue to point Higher on both flat rolled and plate products, but we are keeping a close eye on the trend.

    Here is how we see prices this week:

    Brett Linton

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    Mills seek more scrap after lower prices fail to attract tons

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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.