SMU Price Ranges & Indices: Hot Rolled Tops $1,800

Steel prices rose another $35-50 per ton this week with hot rolled and coated products surpassing notable new benchmarks of $1,800/$2,000. Steel Market Update’s canvass of the market this week puts the average HRC price at $1,820 per ton ($91/cwt) and galvanized at $2,030 ($101.5/cwt). Buyers continued to voice concerns about late mill shipments and outages that may call for even tighter allocation in the fourth quarter. Said one service center exec expressing a common view: “Until new capacity becomes available and buyers start turning away mill offers, the domestic prices will just keep moving up.” SMU’s Price Momentum indicator continues to point toward higher prices for all steel products over the next 30 days. Here is how we see prices this week:

Hot Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $1,800-$1,840 per net ton ($90.00-$92.00/cwt) with an average of $1,820 per ton ($91.00/cwt) FOB mill, east of the Rockies. The lower end of our range increased $100 per ton compared to one week ago, while the upper end remained unchanged. Our overall average is up $50 per ton from last week. Our price momentum on hot rolled steel is Higher, meaning prices are expected to rise in the next 30 days.