Steel Products

Nucor Hikes Sheet Prices, Seeks $800/ton HR Base

October 19, 2023

Nucor Corp. aims to raise base prices for hot-rolled coil to a minimum of $800 per ton ($40 per cwt).

The Charlotte, N.C.-based electric-arc furnace (EAF) steelmaker said it would also seek at least $1,000 per ton for heavy-gauge hot-rolled products.

The company said the price increase was effective immediately in a letter to customers dated Thursday, Oct. 19.

Nucor did not specify the amount of the price hike. It does, however, represent a $50-per-ton increase over the $750 per ton HR that Cleveland-Cliffs announced as a target base price for HR last month.

SMU’s average hot-rolled coil price stands at $725 per ton, up $80 per ton from a 2023 low of $645 per ton recorded in late September.

Michael Cowden

Michael Cowden is managing editor for Steel Market Update. Cowden has covered the steel industry since 2007. He has since 2014 specialized in flat-rolled steel but has previously reported on steel long products, steel pipe and tube as well as aluminum. Before joining SMU, Cowden held reporting jobs at Fastmarkets AMM in Chicago - where he was involved in launching AMM's daily hot-rolled coil index, 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.