Despite a strong desire from mills to keep US HRC price points at levels attained in late August, prices are still soft. Last week, SteelOrbis reported that US HRC spot market prices were at or below $28 cwt. ($617/mt or $560/nt) ex-mill. Today’s official range, sources note, is between $27-$28 cwt. ($595-$617/mt or $540-$560/nt), ex-mill, “although the big guys are certainly doing a little bit better.”
Although it was previously believed that US HRC prices would settle between $25-$27 cwt. ($551-$595/mt or $500-$540/nt) ex-mill before the end of the year, it’s now believed that prices may fall to $24-$26 cwt. ($529-$573/mt or $480-$520/nt), ex-mill. |
Oversupply, lagging demand and a forecast dip in October scrap prices are all expected to place downward price pressure on the US hot rolled coil market. Although some point to planned mill outages next month as a bright spot for pricing, others believe that mills and service centers “have plenty of stock on the ground, so if the mills stop rolling for a week or two, it’s not going to make much of a difference.”