Steel Prices
U.S. Steel Raises Sheet Prices by $100/ton
Written by Michael Cowden
October 19, 2023
U.S. Steel on Thursday said it planned to increase spot base prices for steel sheet by at least $100 per ton ($5 per cwt).
The price hike was effective immediately, according to a letter from Chief Commercial Officer Ken Jaycox to his top sales lieutenants.
The increase from the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker follows price hikes announced earlier in the day by competitors Nucor and Cleveland-Cliffs.
It means that all major domestic sheet mills that publish price hikes have made a coordinated move to push prices higher.
Recall that there are four major sheet mills in the US: Cliffs, Nucor, Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI), and U.S. Steel. But SDI does not typically announce price moves.
Cliffs announced a sheet price hike in late September that was quietly followed by other domestic mills. There has not been a public, coordinated attempt to increase prices since June.
Cliffs and Nucor set target base prices of $800 per ton for hot-rolled coil. That implies a target price of at least $1,000 per ton for cold-rolled and coated products.
U.S. Steel did not announce a target price. But market participants said the company was now seeking at least as much for sheet as its competitors.
Michael Cowden
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