Most steel buyers report that mills are unwilling to budge on new sheet and plate spot order prices this week. Negotiation rates have been low for most of this year, having recently fallen to one of the lowest measures recorded in almost five years.
Sheet and plate prices continue to rise on extremely limited spot availability, long lead times, and solid demand, according to market participants.
SMU’s sheet and plate price indices were steady to higher this week, with all products at multi-year highs.
The US Department of Commerce is adjusting the import duties on Korean cold-rolled and galvanized steel after two administrative reviews.
Steel mill lead times have trended upward since last November and now stand at or near multi-year highs for all products.
Sheet prices continued to grind higher this week on factors familiar to most steel market participants: extremely limited spot availability, long lead times, low inventories, and firm demand.
Hot-rolled and cold-rolled prices held steady again this week while prices for coated products and plate continued to tick upward.
Cold-rolled (CR) coil prices were unchanged in the US this week, while offshore prices varied, though mostly trended up.
Steel mill lead times for flat-rolled steel this week remained extended at historical highs. Plate production times crept out further, while hot-rolled and cold-rolled (HR/CR) coil saw minor contractions.
The majority of steel buyers we polled this week reported that mills are holding firm on new order spot prices.
Market reaction to Nucor’s move was mixed. Some sources said a flat CSP reflected concerns that further increases in US HR prices could attract more import competition. Others expressed frustration. Their view: CSP has kept a lid on prices, something that shouldn’t happen when many buyers remain more concerned about availability than price.
Hot-rolled (HR) coil and plate prices continued to tick higher even as cold-rolled (CR) and coated prices came in unchanged, according to SMU’s latest check of the market.
Cold-rolled coil prices moved higher in the US this week, as offshore prices trended lower. Imports are, as a result, increasingly more competitive, even with the 50% Section 232 tariff.
“Ohio Strip Steel reflects who we are today and where we’re going,” the Dover, Ohio-based company said.
Steel mill lead times remained extended this week on both sheet and plate products. Current production times three to four weeks longer than levels seen last summer.
Steel buyers negotiation rates remain at or near historic lows across most sheet and plate products.
US sheet prices continue to move higher on extremely limited spot availability, solid demand, and extended lead times.
Cold-rolled (CR) coil prices ticked up in the US this week, as offshore prices mostly trended lower.
SMU’s sheet price indices increased further this week, while plate held steady, all at multi-year highs.
Steel mill lead times extended this week on both sheet and plate products, now at multi-year highs.
This week we saw continued low negotiation rates across all products, with cold rolled and plate the least negotiable and galvanized the most.
All five of SMU’s price indices increased this week to new multi-year highs. Prices have increased by 20-25% since the beginning of the year.
The Association of Cold Rolled Specialty Steel (ACRSS) officially responds to the formal investigation Mexico opened into cold-rolled steel imports from the US
We are happy to share that the SMU Price Estimator Tool is now a little easier to navigate.
SMU’s sheet price indices continued to climb this week, while plate held steady, all at multi-year highs.
Steel mill lead times remain at or near multi-year highs for all sheet and plate products.
This week we saw low negotiation rates across all products, with coated and plate products slightly more negotiable than hot rolled and cold rolled.
Sheet and plate price indices increased between $5-20 per short ton (st) from last week.
Sheet prices continue to rise in a market that remains characterized by extremely limited spot availability, solid demand, long lead times, and the lowest sheet inventories since May 2021.
SMU Survey: Sheet and plate lead times remain extended, according to buyers responding to our latest market survey.