Steel Prices

Cliffs seeks $670/ton for Sept HR
Written by Michael Cowden
July 26, 2024
Cleveland-Cliffs announced on Friday that it would seek $670 per short ton (st) for hot-rolled (HR) coil.
The steelmaker said the move was effectively immediately. It coincides with the opening of the company’s HR order book for September.
Cliffs also noted that it could make another announcement before it closes out September.
“Cleveland-Cliffs Steel will be monitoring several key market drivers in the next few weeks and reserves the right to modify pricing prior to completing the September booking availability,” the company said in a letter to customers.
Cliff’s September price is $50/st lower than the $720/st it announced for August. But it is higher than competitor Nucor’s current published price of $650/st.
Recall that Nucor updates HR prices weekly. Cliffs typically updates them once a month.
Regularly scheduled and published HR prices are relatively new to the US steel market. They started when Nucor introduced its weekly spot price in April. Some market participants contend that the announcements have changed the dynamics of sheet pricing.
SMU’s spot HR price stands at $635/st on average, down $5/st from last week and down $35/st from $670 a month ago. We will next update prices on Tuesday.
HR prices have been trending lower for most of the year. But market participants increasingly think that prices might be at or near a bottom.

Michael Cowden
Read more from Michael CowdenLatest in Steel Prices

HR Futures: Correction in market after big rally
Another eventful week in the physical and financial steel markets is coming to a close, but with a markedly different tone than the last update at the end of February.

US and offshore HRC prices tick lower
The threat of tariffs over the past two months has been a springboard for US prices. But the Section 232 reinstatement on March 13 narrowed the domestic premium over imports on a landed basis.

SMU price ranges: Mixed market as buyers await trade clarity
SMU's steel price indices moved in differing directions this week but remained largely stable as cautious buyers await clarity on pending steel tariffs and trade cases.

Nucor slows HRC price climb with $5/ton increase
After eight weeks of double-digit price increases on hot-rolled (HR) coil, Nucor slowed the price rise this week with an increase of $5 per short ton.

HR Futures: Market drifts lower on light volume
Over the past couple of weeks, Midwest HRC futures have been drifting lower on light volume. This begs the question if the rally has run out of steam, or is it catching its breath after ripping roughly $150 in less than two weeks? The April CME Midwest HRC future made an intraday high at $976 […]