Steel Mills
Cliffs Up $100/Ton on Sheet, Targets $1,100/Ton HRC
Written by David Schollaert
February 27, 2023
Cleveland-Cliffs aims to push its hot-rolled coil price up by at least another $100 per ton ($5 per cwt) in its fourth sheet price hike this month.
Cliffs made the announcement in a press release on Monday, Feb. 27, just six days after announcing another $100-per-ton increase. Cliffs said its new target base price for hot band is now $1,100 per ton.
The increase was effective immediately, the Cleveland-based steelmaker said, and applied equally to all new orders of hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and coated products. It did not, however, provide target base prices for cold-rolled and coated material.
Cliffs has now hiked sheet prices by $300 per ton since its initial increase on Feb. 2. We track North American steel mill price increase announcements on flat-rolled and plate products. You can view them here.
It has been more than eight months since hot band was at or above $1,100 per ton, according to SMU’s interactive pricing tool. At the time, though, prices had just begun a 24-week pricing collapse from the most recent high of $1,480 per ton set in mid-April.
Steel Market Update’s hot-rolled coil price currently stands at $875 per ton, up roughly 26% from $695 per ton at the beginning of the year and up 42% from a 2022 low of $615 per ton recorded in November.
We update our prices on Tuesday, so our current price does not reflect the latest round of increases.
By David Schollaert, david@steelmarketupdate.com

David Schollaert
Read more from David SchollaertLatest in Steel Mills

Nucor gives updates on new capacity coming online
Nucor said several of its capital projects will start operations within the next year and provided an update on them.

Algoma swings to loss on ‘market challenges’ and ‘tariff uncertainties’
Canada’s Algoma Steel swung to a loss in the first quarter amid "market challenges," and the company now expects first steel production from its first EAF in the second quarter.

Ternium raises budget for Mexico project
The steelmaker now expects the new steel slab mill in Pesquería will begin operations by Q4’26.

SSAB announces $74M expansion in Alabama
The project will expand heat treat capacity at its Axis, Alabama plant

ArcelorMittal’s EAF in Alabama expects first heat in Q2
The facility at AMNS Calvert will be the first EAF in North America capable of supplying exposed automotive grades with domestically melted and poured material.