Raw Material Prices
US pig iron prices on the decline
Written by Stephen Miller
May 29, 2025
The US mills have managed to reduce pig iron prices to correspond with the sharp declines in domestic scrap prices in May.
Although the overall costs are still at a steep premium to prime scrap, mainly caused by reciprocal tariffs, prices did drop $30-35 per metric ton (mt) for material coming from Brazil and Ukraine.
As previously reported, there have been two cargoes transacted from Brazil, one at $450/mt CFR and another at $440.
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SMU spoke with a Brazilian-based trader who said there has not been further activity since then. He also said the Brazilian producers are hopeful for a rise in scrap prices in the US and are waiting to proceed with new negotiations.
They may have to wait a bit longer as US scrap prices are predicted to be “strong sideways” in June. If any increase does occur, it should not be enough to affect pig iron.
Ukrainian situation
There was a cargo sold by Ukraine to the US at a price of $455/mt CFR New Orleans. The Ukrainian material is considered “low Phos” and does sell at a premium.
It has been difficult to establish the volumes of pig iron shipped from Ukraine. However, The Ukrainian State Customs Service figures indicate in January to April 2025, Ukraine exported ~476,000 mt of pig iron to the US. In April, ~115,000 mt were dispatched to the US. This is considerably more than most observers have thought.
SMU contacted a US importer, who expressed surprise at these figures. He said there have been Ukrainian cargoes shipped to the US, but was not aware of these reported quantities.
According to US government data supplied by ITC’s DATAWEB, the US has received 362,823 mt of pig iron from Ukraine in Q1. If added, the 115,000 mt shipped in April, the 476,000 mt amount is essentially verified.
Given this data, it seems that Ukraine, despite all the effects of being in a state of war with Russia, has done a decent job in partially filling the gap created by sanctions against Russia.
The recent court ruling that declared President Trump’s reciprocal tariffs were unlawful could give relief to US mills for their pig iron purchases and other steelmaking raw materials they import. These include direct-reduced iron (DRI), iron ore pellets, and ferroalloys, among others.
However, this whole situation is far from having a clear outcome and the situation continues to develop.
Stephen Miller
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