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US hot rolled coil (HRC) prices moved higher for a second consecutive week as lower spot prices evaporated and trading activity remained low in the last week after the 4 July holiday.
The Argus weekly domestic US HRC Midwest and southern assessments both rose by $30/short ton (st) to $870/st on an ex-works basis. HRC prices remain down by 28pc since the peak of $1,200/st in April.
Offers were reported between $800-900/st, with repeatable offers between $820-900/st in the Midwest and the south following the Midwest price increase on limited activity.
One Midwest mill reported selling 100st of HRC for $950/st on limited activity, and a Midwest service center reporter paying $900/st for two HRC coils.
This week started off slow after the 4 July holiday fell on a Tuesday last week, with many taking off most if not all of the holiday week.
HRC lead times remained relatively short, dissuading buyers from purchasing large amounts of steel on the spot market.
The weekly Argus US HRC lead time average was flat at 4-5 weeks as mill order books moved into mid-August.
The market is uncertain how much impact there will be from a 2-4 week outage at Steel Dynamics (SDI) Sinton, Texas flat-rolled mill, which the company reported on 7 July. The outage could be resolved later this week or by the end of July, according to the company's time frame.
The 3mn st/yr mill began operations in February 2022 but has had a prolonged ramp-up period, with targeted operating capacity of 80pc for 2023.
Prime scrap traded sideways in all markets except for the Midwest, where prices fell by $30/gross ton (gt) with supply being the driving force behind each region's respective moves.
The weekly Argus US HRC import price rose by $40/st to $800/st on a ddp Houston basis, with repeatable offers between $780-870/st ddp. Limited buying is reported and one trader said they are getting close to their end of the year, with lead times beginning to push into the fourth quarter and US buyers hesitant to order imports for delivery late in 2023.
Imports could play a growing role in the coming months, with US Department of Commerce license data showing a potential year-over-year uptick of 2.3pc in June for HRC import volumes. If June imports remain near license levels, they could increase by nearly 74,000 metric tonnes (t) or 47pc compared to May.
Plate
The Argus weekly domestic US ex-works plate assessment remained flat at $1,570/st, Nucor's mill offer level with no indications that prices have fallen.
Lead times spread out to 3-7 weeks from 4-6 weeks, with lead times encompassing all of August.
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- [Editor:kangmingfei]
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