Steel Products Prices North America
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SMU Price Ranges & Indices: Brought to You by the U.S. Government
Written by John Packard
February 27, 2018
We had another week of “up” pricing as everyone tries to grapple with the impact of Section 232 tariffs. One thing does appear to be a certainty – the laws of supply and demand are now clearly in the hands of the U.S. government.
Here is how we see prices this week:
Hot Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $800-$840 per ton ($40.00/cwt-$42.00/cwt) with an average of $820 per ton ($41.00/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range increased $20 per ton compared to one week ago, while the upper end rose $40 per ton. Our overall average is up $30 compared to last week. Our price momentum on hot rolled steel is now pointing to Higher indicating prices are expected to increase over the next 30-60 days.
Hot Rolled Lead Times: 4-8 weeks
Cold Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $880-$940 per ton ($44.00/cwt-$47.00/cwt) with an average of $910 per ton ($45.50/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range remained the same compared to last week, while the upper end rose $10 per ton. Our overall average is up $5 per ton compared to one week ago. Our price momentum on cold rolled steel is now pointing to Higher indicating prices are expected to increase over the next 30-60 days.
Cold Rolled Lead Times: 5-10 weeks
Galvanized Coil: SMU base price range is $43.50/cwt-$47.00/cwt ($870-$940 per ton) with an average of $45.25/cwt ($905 per ton) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. Both the lower and upper ends of our range increased $10 per ton compared to one week ago. Our overall average is up $10 compared to last week. Our price momentum on galvanized steel is now pointing to Higher indicating prices are expected to increase over the next 30-60 days.
Galvanized .060” G90 Benchmark: SMU price range is $956-$1,026 per net ton with an average of $991 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.
Galvanized Lead Times: 5-12 weeks
Galvalume Coil: SMU base price range is $44.00/cwt-$47.50/cwt ($880-$950 per ton) with an average of $45.75/cwt ($915 per ton) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range increased $10 per ton compared to last week, while the upper end rose $20 per ton. Our overall average is up $15 per ton compared to one week ago. Our price momentum on Galvalume steel is now pointing to Higher indicating prices are expected to increase over the next 30-60 days.
Galvalume .0142” AZ50, Grade 80 Benchmark: SMU price range is $1,171-$1,241 per net ton with an average of $1,206 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.
Galvalume Lead Times: 6-8 weeks
Plate: SMU price range is $870-$920 per ton ($43.50/cwt-$46.00/cwt) with an average of $895 per ton ($44.75/cwt) FOB delivered. The lower end of our range remained the same compared to one week ago, while the upper end increased $40 per ton. Our overall average is up $20 per ton compared to last week. Our price momentum on plate steel is now pointing to Higher indicating prices are expected to increase over the next 30-60 days. We have limited responses on our inquiries from plate buyers this week, so we will be reviewing the plate numbers in more detail on Wednesday and Thursday.
Plate Lead Times: 6-10+ weeks
SMU Note: Below is a graphic showing our hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized, Galvalume, and plate price history. This data is available here on our website with our interactive pricing tool. Note that plate prices are not yet available on our website, but we are in the process of adding that dataset. If you need help navigating the website or need to know your login information, contact us at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com or 800-432-3475.
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John Packard
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Nucor lifts HR coil to $820/ton
Nucor has increased its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil for a fourth consecutive week.
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Nucor pushes HR spot price to $790/ton
Nucor increased its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil to $790 per short ton (st) on Monday, Feb. 10 – a $15/st bump vs. last week. The Charlotte, N.C.-based company has raised its weekly CSP by $40/st over the past three weeks after maintaining tags at $750/st since Nov. 12, according to SMU’s […]
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ArcelorMittal Dofasco increases spot sheet prices
ArcelorMittal Dofasco is raising spot sheet prices by CA$100 per ton (US$70/ton). The Hamilton, Ontario-based flat rolled steelmaker told customers the increase is effective immediately for all new orders. It did not specify to what level this brings its base prices but noted its right to re-quote previous but unconfirmed orders. “We will continue to […]
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Nucor raises HR spot price to $775/ton
Nucor increased its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil to $775 per short ton (st) on Monday, Feb. 3. The $15/st week-on-week (w/w) rise marks the first back-to-back increases in the steelmaker’s weekly CSP since last August, according to SMU’s mill price announcement calendar. Nucor’s joint-venture subsidiary California Steel Industries (CSI) is also up […]
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Nucor raises HR spot price to $760/ton
Nucor increased its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil to $760 per short ton (st) on Monday, Jan. 21. The $10/st week-on-week (w/w) rise marks the first increase in the CSP since Nov. 12. According to SMU’s mill price announcement calendar, the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker held the weekly price at $750/st for 11 […]