US domestic sheet steel prices have continued to soften since our last report a week ago, as short lead times and mills’ soft order books have many believing that the price slide “isn’t done yet.”
This week, “official” US HRC prices are trending at $50-$53 cwt. ($1,102-$1,168/mt or $1,000-$1,060/nt), FOB mill, against $53-$55 cwt. ($1,168-$1,213/mt or $1,060-$1,100/nt), FOB mill, a week ago.
CRC prices are also down week-over-week, and are now being heard at approximately $73-$75 cwt. ($1,609-$1,653/mt or $1,460-$1,500/nt), FOB mill, against $79-$82 cwt. ($1,742-$1,808/mt or $1,580-$1,640/nt), a week ago. Multiple sources have confirmed that deals below these ranges have been heard throughout the marketplace.
Lead times for HRC and CRC have remained steady, week-over-week, at 3-4 weeks for HRC, and 6-7 weeks for CRC.
The downtrend for US sheet steel prices isn’t all that surprising, other sources said, adding that this trend largely mirrors what’s been happening with steel and raw materials prices in other parts of the world. “Believe me, the US market isn’t special,” another source said. “If you take a look at what’s happening in Europe, in Turkey, and everywhere else, prices are coming down everywhere.”