Tag: prices

This week we saw low negotiation rates across all products, though coated products are the most negotiable and plate products are the least.

The Chicago Business Barometer eased for a second consecutive month in April. The 3.6-point slip to 49.2 for the month represents a fall back into contractionary territory.

Market sources say 2026 could be a stronger year for plate market participants than 2025 if this week’s conditions are indicative of how the rest of the year plays out.  

Each of SMU’s sheet and plate price indices climbed higher this week, with all products rising further to new multi-year highs.

Recent conversations with plate market participants across the US revealed a wide range of experiences contingent on a variety of factors.  

Nucor has increased its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil to $1,065 per short ton (st), a $10/st increase from last week.

Sheet market participants reported steady to elevated demand over the past week. But while spot prices continued to edge up, some sources said lead times were becoming more closely aligned to industry norms.

The price gap between US hot-rolled coil (HR) and landed offshore product tightened this week. The dynamic continues as both stateside and offshore prices have largely trended higher.

As the steel market works through the first month of Q2 and the spring outage season, the US HRC futures curve continues to reflect a market adjusting to tightening conditions. The recalibration of near-term expectations sets the stage for how the curve has developed in recent weeks.

According to the latest findings from SMU’s survey, more respondents answered that President Trump’s tariff policies have been helpful to their businesses than in the prior survey. 

In a Final Thoughts las week, I asked “Got Steel?” And if you’re looking for spot tons in June, the answer still isn’t obvious.

Each of SMU’s sheet and plate price indices climbed higher this week, with most products rising further to new multi-year highs

Nucor has increased its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil to $1,055 per short ton (st), a $10/st bump from last week.

The flat-rolled steel market looks poised for continued gains despite widespread concerns about higher freight costs stemming from the Iran War, according to SMU's latest steel market survey.

Factors like fluctuating demand, import availability, domestic product lead times, fuel surcharges, and end-user consumption left plate sources feeling unsettled.  

Participants in the hot- and cold-rolled coils market are optimistic about the market's health.

Conditions in the US market remain tight as domestic demand is holding up with support from border wall projects and data center investments. The supply side has struggled to keep pace with weak import volumes, impacting the market. 

Nucor announced its fuel surcharge for plate will be at least $10 per short ton, effective with shipments beginning May 1.

Most sheet and plate buyers continue to report that mills are not negotiable on new order spot prices, according to our latest market survey conducted this week.

Participants in the galvanized steel market remain encouraged by strengthening product prices, even as increases unfold at a subdued pace.  

Sheet and plate prices increased yet again this week on an increasingly tight spot market. It's gotten so tight that some market participants say they're becoming more concerned about availability than about price.

Nucor has increased its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil to $1,045 per short ton (st), a $5/st bump from last week.

Remember the “Got Milk?” advertising campaign of the 1990s. Maybe we should start a “Got Steel?” campaign. Or maybe “Got Spot Tons?” would be more accurate, if less catchy.

Sheet market participants said they expect hot-rolled coil prices to continue to rise. A Midwest service center source said some mills are not taking spot orders. And even on the contract side, certain mills are “keeping customers at the ‘middle’ of their contract buys to help get lead-times back into shape,” he said. That’s a […]

The Middle East conflict continues to be the principal factor in rising prices, as its impact is now being felt throughout the supply chain. Coated sheet prices have borne the larger brunt of the impact. This is despite...

Plate market participants we spoke to this week offered a long list of concerns: escalating fuel and freight expenses, consolidated sources of end-market demand, tariff-related complications, as well as long lead times and delivery delays from US mills. The cherry on top? An ever shrinking availability of spot tons from domestic mills.

Algoma Steel aims to increase plate prices by US$60 per short ton (CA$80/st), effectively immediately, according to a letter to customers dated Thursday.

More people expect hot-rolled (HR) coil prices to continue to climb. And most respondents to our last survey predict that prices will hit or even breach the $1,100 per short ton (st) threshold.

At least two major US plate producers - SSAB Americas and Nucor - plan to increase plate prices by at least $60 per short ton (st).

Spot market participants worry that limited availability for certain grades of domestically produced plate will extend lead times even further.