The big question in recent weeks has been whether US domestic hollow structural sections (HSS) tubing mills’ mid-May, $1.50 cwt. ($33/mt or $30/nt) price increase would gain traction once the June 15 “effective date” came to pass. SteelOrbis sources have confirmed that some mills have backed away from the increase announcement, while others continue to quote at the higher levels.
Many believed that the only way the US domestic HSS price increase would go through is if the US flats’ mills price increase gained acceptance. Flats mills have pushed out two increases in the past seven weeks and at this point, neither have been successful. For now, US domestic prices for HSS tubing are “mostly steady” at $37.50-$38.50 cwt. ($827-$849/mt or $750-$770/nt), ex-Midwest mill although some customers may find themselves needing to pay slightly more for certain sizes.