Cliffs Joins SSAB in Increasing Plate Prices by $60/ton

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. aims to increase base prices for steel plate by at least $60 per ton ($3 per cwt).

The Cleveland-based steelmaker said the move was effective immediately on all new, non-contract orders.

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It applies equally to as-rolled, normalized, and quenched-and-tempered material, Cliffs said in a press release on Thursday, March 2.

“Cliffs also reserves the right to re-quote any open offers not confirmed by a Cliffs order acknowledgment,” the company said.

Cliffs’ price hike follows one of the same amount announced by SSAB Americas on Friday, Feb. 24.

The moves are notable because SSAB and Cliffs are two of three major plate producers in the US. Nucor is the third.

SMU’s plate price currently stands at $1,490 per ton, up 3.5% from $1,440 per ton a week ago. Before the latest increases plate prices had been steady around $1,430-1,440 per ton since early December, according to our pricing tool.

The gains in plate have been modest compared to those in sheet. Hot-rolled coil, for example is at $935 per ton, up 6.9% from $875 per ton a week ago and up nearly 50% from $625 per ton in early December.

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.