SteelOrbis has confirmed that spot market prices for US domestic plate have softened on the heels of a price reduction announcement by Nucor, which indicated the steelmaker would be reducing their prices by $6.00 cwt. ($132/mt or $120/nt). This is the second $6.00 cwt. reduction announced by Nucor in the past 8 weeks.
Consequently, current prices are now trending at $80.00-$81.00 cwt. ($1,764-$1,786/mt or $1,600-$1,620/nt), FOB mill. Sources close to SteelOrbis have said the announcement didn't suprise them, as demand is "ok but not great" adding that the spread between US domestic HRC and plate "is still too wide."
“If you look at where the market is right now, the spread between hot rolled and plate is about $42 cwt. ($926/mt or $840/nt), which is insane,” the source said.
A historical pricing graph that shows US HRC vs. plate prices, from January 2018 through today, is listed below.
All sources polled have said they believe that additional downward adjustments are likely forthcoming.
