Steel Products Prices North America
February 16, 2020
SMU Market Trends: No Clear Direction for Steel Prices
Written by Tim Triplett
Steel prices finished 2019 on an upward trajectory, giving the market hope for a stronger 2020. That trend proved short-lived, however, as prices stalled in January and February, leaving both buyers and sellers wondering what to expect in the weeks and months ahead.
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, up from a low of $470 per ton in October. As of Feb. 11, the price had lost that momentum and backtracked by about $30 per ton. Most of the service center and manufacturing executives polled by Steel Market Update at that time predicted prices would continue to move sideways or decline even further in the near term. By that point, SMU shifted its Price Momentum Indicator from Higher to Neutral on all flat rolled and plate products, waiting for the market to establish a clear direction.
