SMU scrap tags for shredded, HMS flat while busheling ticks up

An exception, he said, was the busheling price in the Cleveland district, which traded higher by $10 per gross ton (gt) for “no apparent reason.”

A second source commented, “Seems things are in decent balance and the mills were able to keep a lid on prices for September.”

He agreed the market was mostly sideways with the exception of primes, which went up $10/gt.  

The first source said the sideways market reflects continued solid demand from domestic mills, steady to slightly higher export pricing, and a general agreement between buyers and sellers on supply and demand dynamics.

SMU’s ferrous scrap prices in September stand at:

• Busheling at $450-485/gt, averaging $467.50/gt, up $10 from August.
• Shredded at $410-425/gt, averaging $417.50/gt, even with August.
• HMS at $345-380/gt, averaging $362.50/gt, flat from August.

Looking ahead, the first source said the main news in the domestic steel market related to scrap is the upcoming seasonal maintenance outages over the course of the next three months.  

“There are supposed to be the equivalent of 1.1 million tons scheduled to come out of production over that period of time due to mill maintenance downtime,” the source said.

However, he added that mills’ business is very good at the moment and the finished steel market remains tight, “so I am not so certain that amount of steel will actually come out of otherwise regular production rates.”  

The first source was optimistic about scrap pricing for the rest of the year.

“Market observers with whom I speak anticipate strength heading into the end of this calendar year as several new mills enter the market to buy scrap and the steel mill order books remain strong into the typically slower end of year,” he said.

Editor’s note:

For a recap of September market dynamics, click here.