Spot market prices for US domestic HRC and CRC have continued to firm since our last report a week ago, and sources believe that higher June scrap prices will continue to drive sheet prices up even further.
This week, US HRC spot market prices have climbed to $80-$81 cwt. ($1,764-$1,786/mt or $1,600-$1,620/nt), FOB mill, against a range of $78-$80 cwt. ($1,720-$1,764/mt or $1,560-$1,600/nt), FOB mill, a week ago.
CRC spot market prices have also inched up since our last report a week ago and are now being heard at $90-$91 cwt. ($1,984-$2,006/mt or $1,800-$1,820/nt), FOB mill, against a range of $88-$90 cwt. ($1,940-$1,984/mt or $1,760-$1,800/nt), FOB mill, a week ago.
Sources note that long lead times and strong demand for steel is making it hard for service centers to build inventory. “I’ve been in this industry since I graduated from college, and I’ve never seen anything like this,” one source said. “With the market being the way it is, the smaller guys can only buy half of what their credit line allows.”
Another source agreed that higher prices are making buyers who could build inventory nervous about doing so. “When I first started out there were a couple dozen mills and at some point, one of the mills would crack and would start offering cheaper, which would pull the rug out of things,” he added. “Today there are only four major players. With prices the way that they are, we’re all trying to be a bit more cautious out of concern that this could fall as fast as it ran up.”