Steel Products Prices North America

SMU Price Ranges & Indices: Hot Rolled Average Hits $500...

February 24, 2015

We are seeing the benchmark hot rolled coil average as sitting right on the critical $500 per ton mark this week. Most steel buyers with whom we speak are of the opinion that hot rolled coil will drop below $500 per ton within the next week or two. The question then becomes how far down can prices go before we establish a bottom?

The owner of one Midwest service center told Steel Market Update today that he did not see an end to the fall in prices. “The reality of the market…I can assure you prices are not going up, prices are still going down.” This executive told us that the mills were “desperate” for orders.

Whether desperate is an accurate description of what is happening or not, what we found as we spoke to steel buyers and executives around the country was a resignation that steel mills and steel prices continue to be flexible. We saw hot rolled prices as being down an average of $15 per ton, cold rolled down $15 per son, galvanized down $20 per ton and Galvalume down $25 per ton this week. Most of this was due to erosion at the upper end of the range.

Here is how we see spot flat rolled prices this week (all prices shown are in net tons = 2,000 pounds = 1 net ton):

Hot Rolled Coil: SMU Range is $480-$520 per net ton ($24.00/cwt- $26.00/cwt) with an average of $500 per ton ($25.00/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range remained the same compared to one week ago while the upper end declined $30 per ton. Our average is now $15 per ton lower than last week. SMU price momentum for hot rolled steel is for prices to move lower over the next 30 days.

Hot Rolled Lead Times: 1-4 weeks.

Cold Rolled Coil: SMU Range is $600-$650 per net ton ($30.00/cwt- $32.50/cwt) with an average of $625 per ton ($31.25/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range declined $10 per ton compared to last week while the upper end decreased $20 per ton. Our average is now $15 per ton lower than one week ago. SMU price momentum on cold rolled steel is for prices to move lower over the next 30 days.

Cold Rolled Lead Times: 2-6 weeks.

Galvanized Coil: SMU Base Price Range is $30.00/cwt-$32.50/cwt ($600-$650 per net ton) with an average of $31.25/cwt ($625 per ton) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range decreased $10 per ton compared to one week ago while the upper end declined $30 per ton. Our average is now $20 per ton lower than last week. SMU anticipates galvanized prices will move lower over the next 30 days.

Galvanized .060” G90 Benchmark: SMU Range is $669-$719 per net ton with an average of $694 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.

Galvanized Lead Times: 3-6 weeks.

Galvalume Coil: SMU Base Price Range is $30.50/cwt-$32.50/cwt ($610-$650 per net ton) with an average of $31.50/cwt ($630 per ton) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range declined $20 per ton compared to last week while the upper end decreased $30 per ton. Our average is now $25 per ton lower than one week ago. Our expectation is for Galvalume prices to move lower over the next 30 days.

Galvalume .0142” AZ50, Grade 80 Benchmark: SMU Range is $901-$941 per net ton with an average of $921 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.

Galvalume Lead Times: 4-6 weeks.

SMU Note: Below is an interactive graphic showing our hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized, and Galvalume price history. You can only view this interactive graphic when you are logged into the website and reading the newsletter there. If you need help navigating the website or need to know your login information, contact us at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com or by calling 800-432-3475.

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