Category: Steel Prices

Cleveland-Cliffs is now targeting base prices of $1,150 per ton for hot-rolled coil (HRC), according to a press release on Wednesday morning, Jan. 3.

Sheet prices were mixed in SMU’s first assessment of the market in the New Year.

Nucor Corp. announced in a letter to customers on Friday, Dec. 29, that its plate mill group would hold prices unchanged for as-rolled discrete plate, normalized, and quenched-and-tempered plate with the opening of its plate mill order book for February.

We started 2023 with HRC spot pricing around $700 per ton and the third-month future (March ‘23) trading at $800/ton. That same future eventually settled at $1,059/ton - a $259/ton swing. Today, spot pricing is just shy of $1,100/ton for HRC, and the third-month future (March ‘24) settled at $1,091/ton. The clear takeaway: a lot can change over three months. And while future contracts are a valuable tool for hedging, they are a terrible predictor of price.

US hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices might have plateaued. But while prices for offshore product have increased in some regions, imports remain significantly cheaper that domestic material. All told, US prices are roughly 26% more expensive than imports, a premium that is down only slightly from last week.

As we look back at the scrap market for 2023, it basically followed its normal seasonal pattern. Most of the disruptive geopolitical events that riled ferrous raw materials occurred in 2022. So, with those things out of the way—or settling down at least for now—2023 resumed its normal pattern.

US hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices were unchanged week over week (WoW) following a string of mostly upward moves dating back to late September.

Pig iron prices rose month over month (MoM) for all major regions, driven by rising scrap prices.

Over the last two decades, the role of the scrap broker has been diminished in favor of steel mills purchasing their scrap requirements directly from scrap dealers.

US hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices continued their upward movement this week, distinctly outpacing increases for offshore product once again. Domestic tags are now 27% more expensive than imports - the widest pricing gap in nearly two years.

Last week in Chicago, we hosted several metals companies for our bi-annual Metals Price Management Seminar (“MPMS”).

The spread between hot-rolled coil (HRC) and prime scrap prices widened slightly this month, according to SMU’s most recent pricing data.

Sheet prices increased again this week on the heels of higher costs for scrap, pig iron, and iron ore.

US scrap prices shot up in December and are expected to continue their rise in January, market sources told SMU.

The prices for all grades of pig iron have dramatically risen since SMU’s last report from Nov. 18.

US Hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices keep rising on the heels of continued mill hikes, outpacing increases for offshore product. Domestic tags are now 26% more expensive than imports, the widest pricing gap since January 2022.

A large Detroit-area scrap buyer entered the market on Wednesday at significantly higher prices than a month earlier.

Cleveland-Cliffs is now targeting base prices of $1,100 per ton ($55 per cwt) for hot-rolled coil (HRC).

Sheet prices shot higher again this week on the heels of another round of mill price increases as well as on reports of production and supply chain issues at certain domestic producers.

The export market for ferrous scrap has been strengthening over the last month by a sizable margin.

Oct. 26 was my previous Steel Market Update contribution. The night before, Ford and the United Auto Workers (UAW) announced they had reached a tentative agreement for a new labor contract.

US scrap prices are expected to rise in December, industry sources told SMU.

Sheet prices continued to move higher this week on the heels of mill price hikes and extending lead times.

Nucor aims to increase base prices on all new sheet orders, effective immediately. The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker seeks at least $1,100 per ton ($55 per cwt) for hot-rolled coil (HRC), according to a Monday letter to customers.

Flat-rolled steel prices were in a holding pattern ahead of Thanksgiving.

Prices of steelmaking raw materials are largely up over the over the last 30 days, as they were the month prior, according to Steel Market Update’s latest analysis.

Turkish scrap import prices increased for a third consecutive week.

The spread between hot-rolled coil (HRC) and galvanized sheet base prices has been hovering near $200 per net ton since late July, according to SMU’s latest analysis.

European Aluminium, an association representing the entire European aluminum value chain, announced in a press release that it supports the European Commission's proposed 12th package of sanctions against Russia.

The importation of basic pig iron has allowed EAF steelmakers to implement thin-slab casting technology to make drawing-quality flat-rolled sheet over the last 30 years.