Steel Products Prices North America

Nucor Aims to Raise Sheet Prices in First Hike Since March

Written by Michael Cowden

August 8, 2022

Nucor Corp. aims to increase base prices for steel sheet by at least $50 per ton ($2.50 per cwt).

The price hike is effectively immediately and applies to all new orders, the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said in letters to customers dated Monday, Aug. 8.

Nucor

“We reserve the right to review and re-quote any offers that are not confirmed with either a Nucor sales acknowledgement or written acceptance by both parties,” the company said.

The price hike is the first by Nucor since mid-March, when the steelmaker increased sheet base prices by $125 per ton.

That March price hike was supported by the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in late February by Russian forces. The war led to a temporary shortage of key raw materials such as pig iron and sent hot-rolled coil prices up by roughly $500 per ton over about seven weeks.

Prices have fallen since mid/late April and averaged $805 per ton as of last week. That’s down ~16% from $955 per ton in early July and down ~46% from a post-war peak in late April of $1,480 per ton, according to SMU’s interactive pricing tool.

Some market participants have reported numbers well below that figure in recent days.

SMU will next update prices on Tuesday, Aug. 9.

By Michael Cowden, Michael@SteelMarketUpdate.com

Michael Cowden

Michael Cowden is editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. Cowden has covered the steel industry since 2007. He specializes in flat-rolled steel but has also reported on steel long products, steel pipe and tube, and aluminum. Before joining SMU, Cowden held reporting jobs at Fastmarkets AMM in Chicago, the Associated Press in Pittsburgh, and the Cambodia Daily in Phnom Penh. He has also worked as a copy editor and in marketing at the University of Chicago Press. Cowden has a BA in English from the University of Chicago and an MSJ journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Contact him at michael@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7872.

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