International Steel Prices
October 17, 2019
CRU: Dramatic Drop in U.S. Steel Prices Makes Imports Uncompetitive
Written by Estelle Tran
By CRU Prices Analyst Estelle Tran
U.S. steel sheet prices have fallen faster in early Q4 than initially expected, as lower demand levels, economic uncertainty and another $30-40 /l.ton decrease in scrap prices in October guided steel prices down. The CRU Midwest HR coil price assessment on Oct. 16 was $507 /s.ton, down $64 from $571 /s.ton on Sept. 18. Declining domestic HR coil prices have made most offers for imported material outside of the NAFTA region unattractive, even from South Korea, which has no Section 232 steel tariff. Sources contacted said they did not have new import numbers for sheet because they viewed the spreads to be unattractive.
