HRB spot steel prices surge upward

SteelBenchmarker™reported that the U.S. hot-rolled band (HRB) spot price for Feb. 12 rose 1.6 percent to $580 per ton, FOB the mill for the first time after 12 price drops in a row. The world export HRB price surged 5.9 percent to $535 per ton, FOB the port of export, for the fourth consecutive rise. The Chinese HRB ex-works price rose 3.3 percent to $437 per ton, for the fifth time. The Western European HRB price rose 3.4 percent to $613 per ton, ex-works, also for the fifth time.

The four benchmark prices for hot-rolled band included in the Feb. 12 report are:

• U.S.—$580 per metric ton, FOB the mill—up $9per ton from $571 two weeks ago but down $118 per ton from the peak of $698 on July 24, 2006.
• World Export Price—$535 per metric ton, FOB the port of export—up $30 per ton from $505 two weeks ago but still down $75 per ton from the peak of $610 on June 12, 2006.
• Western Europe— $613 per metric ton, ex-works—up $20 per ton from $593 two weeks ago but still down $18 per ton from the peak of $631 on July 24, 2006. Note: SteelBenchmarker believes the Western Europe price is more representative of the Southern European Market.
• China— $437 per metric ton, ex-works—up $14 per ton from $423 two weeks ago but still down $27 per ton from the peak of $464 on June 12, 2006.

Twice each month, SteelBenchmarkerpublishes steel benchmark prices for hot-rolled band, cold-rolled coil, rebar, and standard plate in the U.S., Western Europe, mainland China, and the world export market.