US wide flange beams market: A strong start

US wide flange beams market: A strong start

The US wide flange beams market is still strong going into the new year. Consumption is reported to be at good levels, and the positive momentum is expected to carry the market in to second half of the year. Scrap prices have softened by approximately $20 /ton in January, however, because of the strong beam consumption, local producers are not expected to drop their beam transaction prices for February. Imports are still negligible, but ultimately, high US prices may attract some Asian beams as most Asian markets are very quiet right now. Published prices for US wide flange beams, effective January 9, 2006, are as follows: W10 x 10 88-112 $29.50 cwt. ($590.00/nt or $650.37/mt) W18 x 6 35-46 $31.00 cwt. ($620.00/nt or $683.44 /mt) W24 x 7 55-62 $31.00 cwt. ($620.00/nt or $683.44 /mt) The above prices are ex-mill, effective to customers, and include the raw materials surcharge. The net price change since last week is zero, as Nucor raised base prices but lowered the RMS. December raw materials surcharge: $5.15 cwt. ($103.00 /nt or $113.54 /mt) January raw materials surcharge: $4.40 cwt. ($88.00 /nt or $97.00 /mt)