HR futures: Activity muted amid quiet spot market

There are fewer sellers appearing up front, however, while June simultaneously comes under pressure as the sell-side interest deepens there.

The May 24 CME HRC closed lower from last Thursday provisionally by $7 per short ton (st) at $812/st on April 25, and was down nearly 13% on the month.

Open interest in the CME HRC dropped following the expiration of the April contract, which settled at $841/st. Daily trade volumes were also below recent averages, and down notably from Q1’24.

A sideways CRU print did little to inform or guide the market in either direction. The weekly Nucor offer number provides some additional price transparency. But the market appears unsure of how to digest the information.

Many commercial participants remain sidelined with little appetite on longer term positioning, while financial interests are primarily on the offer side of the market. Scrap paper activity has been especially quiet as well, and physical scrap participants have also cited a quiet spot market. But some are expecting activity to pick up in coming weeks.

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