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    February 16, 2026

    Nucor inches up list price for HR by $5/ton for fourth consecutive week

    Written by Michael Cowden

    Nucor increased its list price for hot-rolled (HR) coil to $980 per short ton (st) on Monday, up $5/st from last week.

    The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker has hiked its HR list price – what it refers to as its consumer spot price (CSP) – by $5/st each week since Jan. 26, according to SMU’s mill price announcement calendar.

    The company said its lead times for HR remained at three to five weeks.

    Nucor also increased the list price for HR at California Steel Industries (CSI), its West Coast subsidiary, to $1,030/st, up $5/st from last week.

    Note that prices west of the Rocky Mountains are typically higher than those east of the Rockies.

    SMU’s price assessment for HR stands at $975/st, up $10/st from last week. We will next update prices on Tuesday afternoon.

    Michael Cowden

    Michael Cowden is editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. Cowden has covered the steel industry since 2007. He specializes in flat-rolled steel but has also reported on steel long products, steel pipe and tube, and aluminum. Before joining SMU, Cowden held reporting jobs at Fastmarkets AMM in Chicago, the Associated Press in Pittsburgh, and the Cambodia Daily in Phnom Penh. He has also worked as a copy editor and in marketing at the University of Chicago Press. Cowden has a BA in English from the University of Chicago and an MSJ journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Contact him at michael@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7872.

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