Steel Products Prices North America
February 11, 2020
SMU Market Trends: Still Some Upside for Steel Prices?
Written by Tim Triplett
Have steel prices peaked or do they still have some upside? That’s the question on steel buyers’ minds. Is today the time to buy or will steel be cheaper tomorrow? Information from Steel Market Update’s market trends questionnaire last week and our canvass of the market today is mixed.
Steel prices rose in November and December on a series of price hikes by the mills with the benchmark price for hot rolled hitting $610 per ton by early January from a low of $470 in October. Since then the price has lost that momentum and backtracked by about $30 to the current average price of $580 per ton. Comments from executives polled today show that most feel prices are most likely to move sideways or down further in the near term. SMU has shifted its Price Momentum Indicator to Neutral until the market establishes a clear direction.
