Nippon Steel and JFE Steel raise sheet prices amid rising costs

Leading Japanese steelmakers Nippon Steel and JFE Steel have announced price increases for domestically produced sheet steel. Steelmakers cite rising raw material costs, operating expenses, and logistics costs.

Nippon Steel, according to BigMint, has announced a price increase of 10,000 yen per ton ($63/t) for thin-gauge rolled steel supplied to distributors and secondary processors in the domestic market, effective April this year. This is the first time the company has raised prices for these products since March 2024. Until now, the steel producer has implemented self-regulatory measures, such as cost reductions, and only partially passed them on to customers.

The increase covers product categories such as hot-rolled black sheet, pickled, cold-rolled, and coated products. Affected customers include distributors as well as manufacturers of pipes and light structural profiles.

Nippon Steel Building Materials and Nippon Steel Plate are also considering raising prices for their group’s products.

JFE Steel, Kallanish notes, announced a similar move last week, raising domestic prices for flat steel by the same amount – 10,000 yen per ton. The decision will take effect for May shipments. The price increase applies to hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and coated sheet products supplied primarily to general industrial users, including pipe manufacturers. Sectors with long-term contracts, such as the automotive industry, will be exempt.

As a reminder, Baoshan Iron & Steel Co (Baosteel), a subsidiary of China Baowu Steel Group, is raising prices for major flat products, including hot-rolled coil (HRC), by 200 yuan per ton ($29/ton) for domestic sales in April.