Market Data
June 3, 2025
Written by Brett Linton
Following eight consecutive weeks of declines, sheet and plate prices saw some upward movement this week in the wake of last Friday’s Section 232 tariff increase announcement. Gains varied by product.
Hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices inched up $5 per short ton (st) this week, recovering from a three-month low. Plate prices also ticked higher, rising $5/st from last week.
Domestic raw steel output fell to a six-month low last week after hitting a multi-year high one week earlier, according to the latest American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) figures.
Drilling activity increased in the US this week but declined in Canada, according to active oil and gas rig count figures recently released from Baker Hughes. The US rig count rose by four to 595 rigs this week, now at the highest level recorded in over two years. Canadian counts eased to a 10-week low of 197 this week, down 10 rigs from the prior week.
The results of the latest SMU flat-rolled market survey are now available on our website to all premium members.
Steel mill lead times extended for sheet and plate products this week, according to buyers responding to our latest market survey. Production times have been historically long for most of the summer.
US service centers’ flat-rolled steel supply declined in August, making the marginal gain the month prior an outlier year-to-date. Shipping days of supply slipped to 44.2 in August, according to SMU data.