Analysis
February 20, 2026
Coil sources: Weekly spot orders slip, mill price hikes go unfelt
Written by Kristen DiLandro
Participants in the domestic sheet market say they experienced lighter inquiries and fewer orders than in previous weeks, rendering domestic mill price increases for spot-market hot- and cold-rolled coils irrelevant.
Unanimously, sources find themselves scratching their heads as to why the market suddenly slowed after weeks of consistent activity. They agreed, when asked, that price increases from mills have not factored much into their week because the rate of orders has slowed too much to assess.
Market commentary
A service center operator located in the Midwest suspects production issues are pushing out lead times for some steel producers. He thinks mill order books are filling as imports no longer cut into demand. However, mills may be experiencing unforeseen issues with ramp-up to accommodate the additional domestic demand.
Whatever the underlying reasons may be, the market was less lively than the source hoped it would be.
“I am not seeing any real change in the HRC market except for another slight increase in price this past Wednesday. I’m not sure if there is enough steam to make it far past an eventual price increase to $50 per hundredweight [$1,000 per short ton],” he said.
Adding, “Our business is not as robust as it was last month, and I am not sure what is causing that. There is a lot of competition right now fighting over the small pieces of the small pie.”
Coil market participants in the Midwest have named mill leads that SMU hasn’t been able to confirm.
A source said, “Two big producers have closed their books for March and claim they will not open April until the first week of March. Another historically reliable mill has closed its books for April and has not said when it will open for May.”
One West Coast-based steel distributor and service center associate expects to see more imports due to the supply constraints.
“With lead times this far out, prices hovering around a $1,000/st, and slower demand, it could have customers eyeing imports they need a few months out,” he said.
He also noted that inquiries for other steel products were more prevalent than demand for HR and CR.
SMU sources say they are experiencing a wider range of lead times.
Earlier this week, participants on the monthly HARDI organization conference call noted experiencing extended lead times for coated products. They cited production bottlenecks on hot- and cold-rolled coils (used as a substrate in coated steel products).
Prices
SMU’s weekly price assessment found no change in HR base spot prices week over week (w/w). However, SMU assessed a slight increase of $5/st for CR.
HR coil continues to transact at $960-990/st. The average price is about $975/st. This week’s price reflects a ~20% increase over the price during the equivalent week of 2025, when the average HR spot price was $815/st.
CR coil prices climbed to $1,130/st this week. The spot price range was $1,100-1,160/st. The weekly average price reflects a ~14% increase from the equivalent week of 2025. The average CR transaction price during this same week a year ago was $990/st.
Find historical pricing data for steel and scrap using the SMU Interactive Pricing Tool.
All prices are ex-works domestic mill unless otherwise noted.
