Outokumpu, Aperam and Acciai Speciali Terni, leading stainless steel producers in Europe, have increased their alloy surcharges for July as compared to last month. Even though Aperam has cut its prices by €1/mt, its alloy surcharges for 304 stainless steel sheet of 2.0 mm thickness have generally increased by €14-36/mt ($19-49/mt), while it is observed that the decline in nickel prices has not been reflected in the alloy surcharges of the mills in question. On July 21, the cash seller and settlement nickel price at London Metal Exchange (LME) closed at $18,725/mt, while nickel prices have recorded a decline of $573/mt since early this month.
The mills' alloy surcharges for July 2014 are as follows:
Producer/ Grade | Outokumpu | Monthly change (€/mt) | Aperam | Monthly change (€/mt) | Acciai Speciali Terni | Monthly change (€/mt) |
430 | €447 ($603) | + €13 ($18) | €425 ($574) | + €4 ($5) | €456 ($616) | + €1 ($1,3) |
304 | €1,394 ($1,882) | + €36 ($49) | €1,348 ($1,820) | - €1 ($1.3) | €1,375 ($1,856) | + €14 ($19) |
316 | €2,185 ($2,950) | + €102 ($138) | €2,111 ($2,850) | + €54 ($73) | €2,163 ($2,920) | + €85 ($115) |
€1 = $1.35