US HRC is just $42/st more expensive than imports

The premium US hot-rolled coil (HRC) held over offshore product for roughly five months has nearly vanished. Domestic hot band prices continue to run downhill at a high rate, erasing a $300-per-short-ton (st) gap they had over imported HRC just two months ago.

All told, US HRC prices are now 5.1% more expensive than imports. The premium is down from 8.8% in last week’s analysis and down from a high of 27% just nine weeks ago. It’s also the smallest margin since early October.

David Schollaert

David Schollaert is deputy editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. He can be contacted at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.