On Monday, Severstal North America sent a letter to customers setting its new minimum published base prices on hot rolled, cold rolled, and coated products will be:
Hot rolled bands: $35.00 cwt. ($772/mt or $700/nt)
Cold rolled bands: $40.50 cwt. ($893/mt or $810/nt)
Hot dipped galvanized: $40.50 cwt. ($893/mt or $810/nt)
The news prices are effective will all new non-contract orders.
Severstal said the price increase is due to increased real demand levels after a firm start in the first months of this year. "Economic indicators in the US have been strong, which projects positive growth in steel consumption in the next quarter. We see generally good and stable demand across all our major market segments with the automotive market continuing to show strong results. Even construction, which has lagged the recovery of the rest of the economy, is beginning to demonstrate some improvement."