In late May, SteelOrbis reported US domestic pig iron prices at $441-452/mt ($400-410/nt) FOB Chicago warehouse for basic steelmaking pig iron and $501-507/mt ($455-460/nt) FOB Chicago warehouse for nodular and foundry grades. At the time, prices were trending stable since late April with sources expecting prices for both grades to decline slowly through the summer.
Consistent with expectations, sources close to SteelOrbis are reporting current basic steelmaking pig iron prices at approximately $419-424/mt ($380-385/nt) FOB Chicago warehouse. This price range represents a decrease of $22/mt from the bottom of the previous range and $28/mt from the top of the previous range on basic pig iron. Nodular grade pig iron prices, on the other hand, have increased and are reported at $518-534/mt ($470-$485/nt) FOB Chicago warehouse. This reflects an increase of $17/mt from the bottom of the previous range and $27/mt from the top of the previous range. A source noted that US domestic basic pig iron prices are “dragging behind” and may increase on higher import pig iron prices as well as higher domestic scrap prices.