Steel Prices
Nucor lowers HRC price to $900/ton
Written by David Schollaert
May 12, 2025
Nucor lowered its weekly spot price for hot-rolled (HR) coil for a second straight week, down $10 per short ton (st), after keeping it in a holding pattern for most of April.
The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker notified customers in a letter on Monday that this week’s base consumer spot price (CSP) for HR coil will be $900/st.
It marks Nucor’s only third price cut year to date, and only its second double-digit cut in six months.
SMU’s May 6 check of the market revealed HR coil prices to be in the range of $820-930/st, with an average of $875/st. Members can track prices for steel sheet and plate using the Interactive Pricing Tool on our website.
Nucor’s letter noted that it will continue offering 3-5 week lead times for HR spot purchases.
SMU’s survey last week showed lead times of 3-6 weeks for HR coil in the wider market, with an average of 5.1 weeks.
West Coast CSP
Nucor also lowered the CSP for HR coil from its West Coast joint-venture subsidiary, California Steel Industries (CSI), by $10/st from last week to $960/st.
SMU members can also view historical flat-rolled and plate price announcements on our steel mill price announcement calendar.
David Schollaert
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Steel buyers said Nucor’s price decrease was a public acknowledgement of what most of the market had already known - that sheet prices were moving lower in a more significant way. The question now is whether mills and service centers will manage the decline or whether prices might fall rapidly, they said.
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Nucor lowers HRC price to $910/ton
After holding its weekly spot price for hot-rolled (HR) coil steady for three weeks at $930 per short ton (st), Nucor lowered the price this week by $20/st.