Cleveland-Cliffs raises HRC price to $950/mt for July orders

American steel producer Cleveland-Cliffs announced the opening of its July order book for hot-rolled coil (HRC) at a price of $950/t. This was stated in a June letter to customers.

The new price is a significant increase compared to the June offer, which was $910/t. Thus, the cost of HRC increased by $40/t or 4.4%, reflecting changes in market conditions.

The company reserves the right to change the price during the July booking window. At the same time, Cleveland-Cliffs reaffirms its commitment to working with its supply chain partners.

It should be noted that Cleveland-Cliffs’ June HRC prices were reduced by $65/t, or almost 7%, compared to May offers.

Overall, the US HRC market experienced a sharp decline in May: the average price fell by 7.1% month-on-month to $885/t ex-works. The key factors were a combination of weak end demand, lower scrap prices, and sluggish business activity after the end of the “panic buying” period in March-April.

Key steel producers were under pressure from consumers and lowered their offers. In particular, HRC Nucor lost $60-70/t in price in April-May. Only in early June did the company raise prices for the first time in 10 weeks. Offers have been rising for the second week in a row.

Despite isolated signals of a possible increase in purchases, most market participants expect a further gradual decline in quotations in the summer.