Steel Prices

U.S. Steel increases sheet prices by $50/ton, seeks $800/ton HR
Written by Michael Cowden
January 31, 2025
U.S. Steel has increased sheet prices by $50 per short ton (st), according to market participants.
The Pittsburgh-based steelmaker has also set a new target price of $800/st for hot-rolled coil, they said.
The price hike was effective immediately and applied equally to hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and coated flat-rolled steel. There was no letter announcing the move as best as SMU can determine.
U.S. Steel’s $50/st price hike appears to be the first since it announced a $30/st increase in October. Its price increase also comes after Nucor announced a modest $10/st price hike on Monday. That move represented Nucor’s first price increase since mid-November, according to SMU’s mill price announcement calendar.
Some context on why the increase amounts differ so much: Nucor, unlike most mills, updates prices once a week. So it tends to increase prices more gradually than mills that announce prices on a monthly basis (Cleveland-Cliffs, for example) or on an irregular basis (most other mills).
SMU has in addition heard that mills that had been offering coated pricing in the low $800s/st have raised price substantially in more recent offers.
The price hikes come on the heels of higher scrap prices in January, expectations that scrap will move higher in February, and anticipation that President Trump’s tariffs could drive both up prices for both steel and raw materials such as scrap and pig iron.

Michael Cowden
Read more from Michael CowdenLatest in Steel Prices

Nucor holds HRC CSP at $930/ton for third week
Nucor’s weekly consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil remained unchanged this week.

CRU: Chinese steel export prices mixed, although local buying improves
Chinese export prices for longs were almost steady this week, while those for flats generally declined as producers cut prices to secure deals.

HR Futures: Nascent rally in HRC futures settles above 6-week downtrend
The CME Midwest HRC futures market’s response to Trump’s election and subsequent comments about blanket 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico was surprisingly counterintuitive.

SMU price ranges: Tags flat or down, sheet momentum ‘lower’
SMU’s flat-rolled steel prices were flat or lower as tariff-related uncertainty continued to drag on the market.

Pig iron markets seek clarity after tariff confusion
The pig iron markets have been quiet for the last several weeks, as tariff implementation on imports into the US became a reality. There has been debate on which party will have to pay the tariff. A recent transaction could provide the answer to that question.