Steelmaker Nucor’s Consumer Spot Price (CSP) -the price it charges for hot-rolled coils across all of its mills- increased another 2 percent this week following a similar nearly 4 percent increase for the week of July 29, the steelmaker said today in a letter to its customers.
The Nucor CSP now stands at $690/st or $34.50/cwt ($761/mt) FOB mill, up nearly 6 percent in two weeks. The first price increase on July 29, to $675/st or $33.75/cwt. ($744/mt), was the first price rise announced by Nucor since May 20, as demand for finished steel continued to wane across the US.
Steel scrap market insiders tell SteelOrbis a developing outlook for higher August scrap prices is causing pricing in the flat steel market to rise for the first time since early April.
“We’re hearing pretty much the same on August scrap as late last week,” one scrap market insider told SteelOrbis. “Mills (Midwest) are pushing for sideways to July, while the sellers want up money.”
Steel market insiders tell SteelOrbis August scrap is expected to settle sideways to up $20/gt ($22/mt) across all grades on a delivered to mill basis because scrap inventories in the US Midwest and Northeast were reportedly off between 20-50 percent as collections slumped amid low price offers from peddlers and hot weather, which reduced scrap gathering activity, they said. Lower manufacturing activity during the first two quarters of 2024 is cited as also reducing the production of prime grade scrap, they said.
