Steel Products Prices North America

Hot Rolled vs. Plate Prices: Plate Premium on the Rise Again

Written by Laura Miller

May 19, 2023

The price spread between hot-rolled sheet and steel plate rose for the sixth consecutive week as hot-rolled prices continued their descent and plate prices remained relatively stable, according to SMU’s price indices published last Tuesday.

SMU’s hot-rolled coil index averaged $1,040 per net ton ($52.00 per cwt) in the latest market check on May 16. The price has now fallen for the fifth week in a row from this year’s peak of $1,160 per ton during the week of Apr. 11 (see Figure 1).

Plate prices, meanwhile, registered a slight tick upward last week, rising by $10 per ton to an average of $1,535 per ton (see Figure 1). Plate prices are basically flat considering the high base price. So far this year, plate prices have remained fairly steady, averaging between $1,440 and $1,560 per ton.

05.19.23 Plate HRC Spread 1

The price spread between hot rolled and plate ballooned last year as pricing between the two products decoupled when sheet prices began to fall and plate held steady. The spread peaked at $970 per ton the week of July 26, 2022, then remained elevated, not falling below $840 per ton until the beginning of December. The spread then fell almost every week, pausing only to remain flat the week of Christmas, then finally bottoming at $395 per ton this year during the week of March 21. The spread has been generally rising since then, sitting at $495 per ton as of last week (see Figure 2).

05.19.23 Plate HRC Spread 2

To better compare this price spread, we graphed the plate price premium over hot rolled as a percentage of the HR price (see Figure 3). This is an attempt to paint a clearer comparison against historical pricing data.

The plate premium over HR peaked at 152% during the week of Thanksgiving last year and then fell this year to as low as 34% the week of Apr. 11. The spread has since increased each week, rising to 48% last week.

05.19.23 Plate HRC Spread 3

By Laura Miller, laura@steelmarketupdate.com

Laura Miller

Laura Miller is a reporter and editor for Steel Market Update. She has held a variety of positions within the steel industry since 2007, including reporting and editing for Steel Business Briefing/Platts, the Association for Iron and Steel Technology, and Kallanish Commodities, as well as marketing for what was then known as ThyssenKrupp Steel USA (now AM/NS Calvert). After a five-year hiatus working across other industries, she returned to steel in 2021 and has covered the flat rolled, tubular, and trade areas of the industry. She is a member of the Association of Women in the Metal Industries and a past-president of the AWMI Pittsburgh Chapter. She holds a BA in Latin American Studies from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. She can be reached at laura@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7869.

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