U.S. HRB price-drop slows; Western Europe price plummets

SteelBenchmarker™reported that the U.S. hot-rolled band (HRB) spot price fell $5 to $650 per ton, FOB the mill for the fifth decline in a row. This drop was moderate compared to the $20 per ton decrease in the previous period.

The world export HRB price for October 9 declined $8 to $531 per ton, FOB the port of export, for the eighth drop in a row. The Western Europe HRB ex-works price plunged $28 to $580 per ton, while the Chinese HRB ex-works price increased $6 to $404 per ton.

The four benchmark prices for hot-rolled band included in the Oct. 11 report are:

• U.S.—$650 per metric ton, FOB the mill—down $5 per ton, or 1%, from $655 two weeks ago and down $48 per ton from the peak of $698 on July 24, 2006.
• World Export Price—$531 per metric ton, FOB the port of export—down $8 per ton, or 2%, versus $539 on Sept. 25, and down $79 per ton from the peak of $610 on June 12, 2006.
• Western Europe— $580 per metric ton, ex-works—down $28 Sept. 25 and down $51 per ton from the peak of $631 on July 24, 2006.
• China— $404 per metric ton, ex-works—up $6 per ton, or 2%, from $398 two weeks ago, but down $60 per ton from the peak of $464 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.