Nucor continues series of price increases for hot-rolled coil

American steel company Nucor has notified customers of another increase in the weekly spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled coil (HRC). For the current week (December 8-14), offers rose by $10/t or 1.1% compared to the previous week, to $930 per short ton, which is the highest value since the beginning of May this year.

At the same time, Nucor’s joint venture on the West Coast, California Steel Industries (CSI), also increased its HRC prices to $980/t, which is $10/t, or 1%, more than last week.

Thus, the company continues its series of price increases, which has been going on for the seventh week in a row. The total increase for this period was $55/t for all companies except CSI (+$45/t).

Delivery times are stated at 3-5 weeks.

According to SMU, the average price for hot-rolled coil was $895 per short ton FOB east of the Rockies as of December 2. This is $25/t more than the previous week. Kallanish estimates HRC offers in the US last week at $880-910/t compared to $880-900/t a week earlier.

As a reminder, in November, the global market for hot-rolled coil was mostly growing. The EU and the US saw price increases amid more stable demand and reduced supply, while China, on the contrary, remained under pressure from seasonal decline and competition in export markets. In particular, offers from US suppliers rose by 4.1% during the period from October 31 to November 21, to $970/t.