Plate

SMU price ranges: Sheet ticks higher, plate stable

October 28, 2025

Sheet steel indices increased across the board this week, while plate prices held steady. All five of SMU’s price indices are higher than they were two weeks ago, and all but one are above levels recorded roughly a month ago.

Hot-rolled coil prices ticked higher for the third consecutive week, rising $15 per short ton (st) week over week (w/w) to an 11-week high of $820/st.

Our cold rolled index surpassed the $1,000/st threshold this week, rising $10/st w/w to $1,005/st. Like HRC, this is the highest cold rolled average seen since early August.

Tandem products saw varying degrees of increases. Galvanized prices inched up $5/st w/w to $930/st, holding within $5/st of where our index has sat over the past three weeks. Meanwhile, Galvalume increased $15/st from last week to a nine-week high of $975/st.

Following the $25/st jump seen last week, plate prices held steady at $990/st this week. This remains one of the highest prices seen in nearly two months.

In light of this, SMU’s price momentum indicator has been adjusted from neutral to higher for sheet products, signaling that we foresee prices continuing to rise from here. Plate momentum remains at neutral, as it has since Sept. 30.

Refer to Table 1 (click to enlarge) for our latest price indices and trends.

Hot-rolled coil: $780–860/st, averaging $820/st

The lower end of our range is up $20/st w/w, while the top end is up $10/st. Our overall average is up $15/st w/w.

Hot-rolled lead times range from 3–6 weeks, averaging 4.7 weeks as of our Oct. 15 market survey. We will publish updated lead times this Thursday.

Cold-rolled coil: $990–1,020/st, averaging $1,005/st

The lower end of our range is up $50/st w/w, while the top end is down $30/st. Our overall average is up $10/st w/w.

Cold-rolled lead times range from 4–8 weeks, averaging 6.3 weeks through our latest survey.

Galvanized coil: $860–1,000/st, averaging $930/st

The lower end of our range is unchanged w/w, while the top end is up $10/st. Our overall average is up $5/st w/w.

Galvanized .060” G90 benchmark: SMU price range is $938–1,078/st, averaging $1,008/st FOB mill, east of the Rockies.

Galvanized lead times range from 4–8 weeks, averaging 6.1 weeks through our latest survey.

Galvalume coil: $920–1,030/st, averaging $975/st

The lower end of our range is unchanged w/w, while the top end is up $30/st. Our overall average is up $15/st w/w.

Galvalume .0142” AZ50, grade 80 benchmark: SMU price range is $1,274–1,384/st, averaging $1,329/st FOB mill, east of the Rockies.

Galvalume lead times range from 5–8 weeks, averaging 6.5 weeks through our latest survey.

Plate: $940–1,040/st, averaging $990/st

The lower end of our range is down $10/st w/w, while the top end is up $10/st. Our overall average is unchanged w/w.

Plate lead times range from 3–7 weeks, averaging 5.0 weeks through our latest survey.

SMU note: The graphic above shows a history of our hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized, Galvalume, and plate prices. This data is also available on our website with our interactive pricing tool. If you need help navigating the site or logging in, contact us at info@steelmarketupdate.com.

Brett Linton

Brett Linton is a digital operations analyst for Steel Market Update, where he began his career. Linton has been in the steel industry since 2010. He has held roles as a category manager and strategic insights director at Reibus before returning to SMU in 2024. He is a graduate of The University of North Georgia with a degree in Finance and Accounting. Brett can be reached at brett@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-314-0179.