After weeks of slow but steady price erosion, US domestic flat rolled steel mills decided enough was enough; in the past 10 days, California Steel Industries, Nucor Sheet Mill Group and NLMK USA announced they would be raising prices on all flat rolled steel products, including US domestic HDG coil, by $1.50 cwt. ($33/mt or $30/nt), effective immediately.
And while the announcements have prevented further slippage in spot market prices, they have failed to “push the needle North.” It’s also worth noting that while there is widespread belief that the Section 232 investigation will lead to higher prices within the US domestic steel market, buyers “haven’t yet jumped back into buying with both feet.”
The current expectation is that the US DOC will announce their decision in the current investigation in late June; action by the Trump administration is expected to be swift.
“Prices are stable now, but all bets will soon be off,” a source said.
| Cwt. | Metric Ton (mt) | Net ton (nt) | Change from last week | |
| US domestic HDG base price | $38-$40 | $838-$882 | $760-$800 | neutral |
| 0.012”x40.875” G30 | ||||
| ex-Midwest mill | $46-$47 | $1014-$1036 | $920-$940 | neutral |
| 0.019”x48” G90 | ||||
| ex-Midwest mill | $46-$47 | $1014-$1036 | $920-$940 | neutral |
| US domestic Galvalume base price | ||||
| ex-Midwest mill | $38-$40 | $838-$882 | $760-$800 | neutral |
| 0.019x41.5625 Gr80/AZ55 | ||||
| ex-Midwest mill | $46-$47 | $1014-$1036 | $920-$940 | neutral |