Steel Products

US HRC, Busheling Scrap Price Spread Narrows in August
Written by Ethan Bernard
August 15, 2023
The spread between hot-rolled coil (HRC) and prime scrap prices narrowed further this month, according to Steel Market Update’s most recent pricing data.
SMU’s average HRC price dropped, while busheling scrap tags ticked up slightly into a wider range.
Our HRC average price fell $15 per net ton week over week to $790 per ton ($40 per cwt) as of Tuesday, Aug. 8.
Busheling tags, however, increased $5 per gross ton from July to an average of $450 per gross ton for August. Figure 1 shows price histories for each product.

After converting scrap prices to dollars per net ton for an equal comparison, the differential between HRC and busheling scrap prices is $393 per net ton as of Aug. 14, down $100 from a month earlier. (Figure 2). This is the fourth consecutive month where the spread has narrowed.

By the way, did you know our Interactive Pricing Tool has the capability to show steel and scrap prices in dollars per net ton, dollars per metric ton, and dollars per gross ton?
Figure 3 explores this relationship in a different way – we have graphed HRC’s premium over busheling scrap as a percentage. HRC prices now carry a 77% premium over prime scrap, off from 100% a month earlier.


Ethan Bernard
Read more from Ethan BernardLatest in Steel Products

US and Canadian rig counts stabilize
US counts continue to hover just above historic lows, while Canadian figures remain comparatively healthy.

Plate market sources critique mill hikes amid current market conditions
Following spot market plate price increase notices issued by domestic mills this past week, participants are contemplating the rationale behind the increases and whether they will stick. Some sources anticipate that current market conditions will shift in November and believe the increases may set a new "pricing floor."

Oregon Steel Mills lifts plate prices by $60/ton
Oregon Steel Mills has joined other producers in announcing a price increase of at least $60 per short ton on steel plate.

CRU: Construction of pilot plant for green steel process starts
Voestalpine and partners have begun building an industrial-scale Hy4Smelt demonstration plant in Linz, Austria, which they hope will become key in the decarbonization of steel.

Rig count increases in the US and in Canada
Oil and gas drilling activity increased this week in the US and Canada for the third consecutive week, according to the latest Baker Hughes rig count data. US counts continue to hover just above historic lows, while Canadian figures remain comparatively healthy.