How long will US HDG prices hold steady?

US domestic hot dipped galvanized and Galvalume coil prices are unchanged since our last report a week ago, as the “leaps and bounds” price runup seems to have stabilized.

Market conditions largely mirror what was seen last week, and coated steel remains boosted by strength within the automotive sector. However, as SteelOrbis has noted several times in recent weeks, it’s our position that the “mad rush of orders” that emerged in late August was more about restocking than it was about marked improvements in finished steel demand.

For example, today it’s been heard that David J. Joseph Co. is already offering to buy scrap in the South/Southeast at down $10/gt from September settled levels. Whether the market will settle downward, or if scrap yards will hold their line at sideways, has yet to be determined. Either way, this seems to support our prediction that flat rolled steel pricing will begin to correct in the last two months of the year.

This weeks’ HDG and Galvalume coil prices are listed in the chart below.