Steel Products Prices North America

SMU Price Ranges & Indices: All is Quiet...

Written by Brett Linton

January 22, 2019

All is quiet on the eastern front (the western front announced increases yesterday – so, not so quiet there). Steel buyers have been telling Steel Market Update over the past few days that their inventories are stable to high, they are not comfortable with all of the uncertainty and concerned with the lack of transparency (foreign imports data missing because of government shutdown) and, therefore, are sitting on their hands waiting for a sign. When buyers sit, we tend to see flat rolled and plate steel prices bounce – up and down – which is what we caught this week.

Here is how we see prices this week:

Hot Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $650-$720 per ton ($32.50/cwt-$36.00/cwt) with an average of $685 per ton ($34.25/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. Both the lower and upper ends of our range remained the same compared to one week ago. Our overall average is unchanged compared to last week. Our price momentum on hot rolled steel is Lower meaning we expect prices to decline over the next 30 to 60 days.

Hot Rolled Lead Times: 2-4 weeks

Cold Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $750-$830 per ton ($37.50/cwt-$41.50/cwt) with an average of $790 per ton ($39.50/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range fell $30 per ton compared to last week, while the upper end rose $10 per ton. Our overall average is down $10 compared to one week ago. Our price momentum on cold rolled steel is Lower meaning we expect prices to decline over the next 30 to 60 days.

Cold Rolled Lead Times: 3-8 weeks

Galvanized Coil: SMU base price range is $38.00/cwt-$41.50/cwt ($760-$830 per ton) with an average of $39.75/cwt ($795 per ton) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range declined $10 per ton compared to one week ago, as did the upper end. Our overall average is down $10 per ton compared to last week. Our price momentum on galvanized steel is Lower meaning we expect prices to decline over the next 30 to 60 days.

Galvanized .060” G90 Benchmark: SMU price range is $838-$908 per net ton with an average of $873 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.

Galvanized Lead Times: 4-9 weeks

Galvalume Coil: SMU base price range is $38.50/cwt-$42.00/cwt ($770-$840 per ton) with an average of $40.25/cwt ($805 per ton) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. Both the lower and upper ends of our range remained the same compared to last week. Our overall average is unchanged compared to one week ago. Our price momentum on Galvalume steel is Lower meaning we expect prices to decline over the next 30 to 60 days.

Galvalume .0142” AZ50, Grade 80 Benchmark: SMU price range is $1,061-$1,131 per net ton with an average of $1,096 per ton FOB mill, east of the Rockies.

Galvalume Lead Times: 4-9 weeks

Plate: SMU price range is $970-$1,010 per ton ($48.50/cwt-$50.50/cwt) with an average of $990 per ton ($49.50/cwt) FOB delivered to the customer’s facility. The lower end of our range fell $10 per ton compared to one week ago, while the upper end declined $20 per ton. Our overall average is down $15 per ton compared to last week. Our price momentum on plate steel is Neutral meaning we expect stable prices over the next 30 days. The domestic plate mills continue to be on controlled order entry as their order books are strong with limited spot plate tonnage available.

Plate Lead Times: 4-9 weeks, allocation/controlled order entry

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.

Brett Linton

Brett Linton is a senior analyst for Steel Market Update, where he began his career. Linton has been in the steel industry since 2010. He has held roles as a category manager and strategic insights director at Reibus before returning to SMU in 2024. He is a graduate of The University of North Georgia with a degree in Finance and Accounting. Brett can be reached at brett@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-314-0179.

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