Sources close to SteelOrbis have continued to report that the average spot market prices for US domestic hot rolled and cold rolled coil “continue to bounce within last week’s ranges.”
As such, US HRC prices are still trending at roughly $37-$39 cwt. ($816-$860/mt or $740-$780/nt), FOB mill, although some transactions up to $1.00 cwt. ($22/mt or $20/nt) above this range have been heard within the market.
CRC prices are also still relatively stable at approximately $50-$55 cwt. ($1,102-$1,213/mt or $1,000-$1,100/nt), FOB mill, depending on the size of the order. However, multiple sources have reported that a growing number of deals are taking place toward the bottom end of that range.
Lead times are also mostly neutral, at 4 weeks for HRC and 6 weeks for CRC.
Sources close to SteelOrbis say that while they feel that it’s unlikely that historical $5 cwt ($110/mt or $100/nt) spread between hot and cold rolled coil will return, they do think that at $10 ($220/mt or $200/nt) spread will likely be the new normal.
As such, many speculate that CRC prices are still “a hair too high and should come down a little bit more before things normalize.”