• Skip to main content

    Plate

    May 19, 2021

    Nucor Opens July Plate Book, Increases Prices $100-150/ton

    Written by Michael Cowden

    Nucor has in a leading move increased plate prices by $100-150 per ton ($5-7.5/cwt) along with the opening of its July order book.

    Nucor’s new ex-works base price for cut-to-length A36 plate is $1,320 per ton ($66/cwt), up from $1,120 per ton last month, according to letters to customers.

    NucorThe steelmaker’s new base prices for quenched-and-tempered Grade A514 material with a Grade B base is now $1,640 per ton, up from $1,490 per ton in late April.

    And Nucor’s new price for normalized A516-70 product is $1,520 per ton, up from $1,370 per ton a month prior.

    “We reserve the right to review and requote any offers that are not confirmed with either a Nucor sales acknowledgement or written acceptance by both parties,” the company said in a letter to customers detailing the new prices on Wednesday, May 19.

    Nucor last increased plate prices by $80-100 per ton on April 26, meaning the company is seeking $180-250 per ton more for its product in less than a month.

    By Michael Cowden, Michael@SteelMarketUpdate.com

    Michael Cowden

    Michael Cowden is editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. Cowden has covered the steel industry since 2007. He specializes in flat-rolled steel but has also reported on steel long products, steel pipe and tube, and aluminum. Before joining SMU, Cowden held reporting jobs at Fastmarkets AMM in Chicago, the Associated Press in Pittsburgh, and the Cambodia Daily in Phnom Penh. He has also worked as a copy editor and in marketing at the University of Chicago Press. Cowden has a BA in English from the University of Chicago and an MSJ journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Contact him at michael@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7872.

    Read more from Michael Cowden

    Latest in Plate

    SMU Survey: Mill lead times hold at extended levels

    Steel mill lead times held steady for sheet products this week and extended further on plate, according to buyers responding to our latest market survey. Production times have been historically long for most of the summer, currently at or near multi-year highs on each of the products we measure. Over two-thirds of the buyers responding to this week’s survey (68%) believe lead times will be flat two months from now, similar to recent surveys. Of the remainder, 19% predict lead times will extend further, and 13% expect contractions.