US domestic flat rolled spot prices have increased this week, as order activity remains steady and April order books continue to fill up. Despite skepticism over AK Steel's $50/nt price hike (announced February 10) on all flat rolled products, toward the end of last week a number of other mills had begun announcing increases of their own-anywhere from $30-$50/nt depending on the mill. The asking price of $45.00 cwt. ($992/mt or $900/nt) for HRC-the benchmark for a number of producers-is still unattainable for the time being, but spot prices are still moving up, and could inch closer to mill asking prices by mid-March.
Compared to last week, spot prices for US domestic hot rolled coil (HRC) and cold rolled coil (CRC) are up $1.00-$2.00 cwt. ($22-$44/mt or $20-$40/nt), depending on the product, with offers on the lower end of this week's ranges only available for large tonnage buyers, and even then, only until the end of February. The most commonly reported spot prices for HRC are now between $41.50-$43.50 cwt. ($915-$959/mt or $830-$870/nt) ex-Midwest mill with the majority of orders being placed at $42.00 cwt. ($926/mt or $840/nt) ex-mill and above. CRC spot prices are now ranging between $47.00-$49.00 cwt. ($1,036-$1,080/mt or $940-$980/nt) ex-Midwest mill, although supply of CRC remains tight and mills continue to book most orders at around $49.00 cwt.
What appears to still be driving the flat-rolled market are some ongoing problems in the supply line from upper Midwest mills; in at least one case, a number of orders for March/April delivery had to be canceled, due to the inability to produce enough material to cover current orders already on the books. Moreover, internal logistical problems in delivery abilities in the Southeast are causing delayed deliveries of HRC that was set for January shipment.
In addition to supply side difficulties, a lack of import offers is also helping to push US spot prices higher. The most recent Russian offer heard-late last week-at about $42.00-$43.00 cwt. ($926-$948/mt or $840-$860/nt) duty-paid FOB loaded truck in US Gulf ports, was too high to generate any real interest, but traders note that Russian mills may come back with a more competitive offer in the coming weeks.
US buyers are placing orders south of the border; however the small amount coming from Mexico is not enough to disrupt the US market. Chinese CRC offers of $45.00-$47.00 cwt. ($992-$1,036/mt or $900-$940/nt) duty-paid FOB loaded truck in US Gulf ports are still much too high, with lead times too far out (now entirely in June and even early July) for US buyers to place orders.
| Cwt. | Metric Ton (mt) | Net ton (nt) | Change from last week | |
| US domestic | ||||
| HRC | $41.50-$43.50 | $915-$959 | $830-$870 | ↑ $1.50 cwt. |
| CRC | $47.00-$49.00 | $1,036-$1,080 | $940-$980 | ↑ $2.00 cwt. |
| Mexican* | ||||
| HRC | $41.00-$42.00 | $904-$926 | $820-$840 | ↑ $1.00 cwt. |
| Chinese** | ||||
| CRC | $45.00-$47.00 | $992-$1,036 | $900- $940 | newly offered |
**Duty-paid FOB loaded truck in US Gulf ports