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    SMU Price Ranges: All Products Grind Lower

    Written by Brett Linton


    Steel prices trended lower again this week, the second consecutive week of moderate declines, according to Steel Market Update sources. Sheet prices declined between $10–30 per net ton compared to last week, now at levels not seen since late 2020. Plate prices were broadly unchanged from last week, but are slowly easing towards levels last seen 15 months ago. These declines follow nearly two months of mostly sideways or modestly down prices.

    Hot-rolled sheet and plate prices eased $10 per ton versus last week, while cold rolled and coated prices fell at a moderately faster rate of $20–30 per ton.

    Brett Linton

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    Plate supply squeeze tightens as demand presses higher

    The domestic plate market is showing few signs of relief for steel buyers. Lead times are stretching well beyond seasonal norms, spot availability has all but evaporated, and mills are drawing hard lines on contract volumes heading into 2027 negotiations. And the supply squeeze will likely intensify in a market that some industry sources say is structurally undersupplied because of stringent US trade and tariff policies. Imports have been arriving in larger volumes, and the expectation is they will continue to tick higher into 2027. The big question is whether those foreign tons will arrive in volumes sufficient to provide the relief steel consumers want.