Argus' US Weekly Domestic Hot Rolled Coil Price Index (HRC) is up $ 20 to $ 755 per tonne this week, while on-order lead times have increased to 8-9 weeks from 7-8 weeks. According to analysts, today's spot price is the highest since March 2019.
Steel company Nucor has put on the market its proposals with prices in the amount of $ 840 per ton in January, but market participants are not sure that they will be able to sell anything at that price.
Steel company ArcelorMittal is reportedly plagued by production problems at its Burns Harbor plant in Indiana due to the Covid-19 outbreak at the facility, while a local union at its Cleveland plant has also confirmed it is dealing with outbreak of a pandemic. The company does not comment on whether steel production is being cut due to these problems.
The spread between bushel scrap delivered to the midwestern U.S. mills and HRC selling prices was $ 491.61, 4.2 percent higher than the $ 471.61 spread a week earlier, and 48 percentage points higher than $ 331.71 per share a year ago.
The Cold Rolled Coil (CRC) rating for the US domestic market rose $ 3.75 to $ 910 per tonne, while the hot dip galvanized coil (HDG) rating rose $ 5 to $ 915 per tonne. The lead times for CRC and HDG applications remained unchanged at 12 weeks.
