Last week, SteelOrbis reported that US CRC prices had ticked down by $1.00 cwt.($22/mt), to $35-$37 cwt. ($772-$816/mt or $700-$740/nt), ex-mill, with sources saying additional price softening would be on the horizon.
While prices have remained “mostly stable” since our last report a week ago, it’s still believed that US CRC prices have not bottomed out. There are several factors contributing to this prediction, including the flurry of order activity that took place in mid-August, when mills announced three price increases and buyers bought heavy in anticipation that prices were about to rebound. Additionally, inventories at mills and at service centers are currently healthy, and US scrap prices are forecast to dip for the second month in a row during the October buy-cycle.
Market players suspect that if scrap does trend downward as expected, additional downward pressure will be placed on US CRC spot market prices. The extent of that downward pressure, source said, will not be known until late next week.