AK Steel said on 06 Aug that it will increase spot market base prices for all carbon flat-rolled steel products by $30 per ton, effective immediately with new orders.
AK Steel (AKS) shocked the market by raising prices second time in just 10 days. “Demand is weak, and AKS’s second price hike was never ‘accepted’ by the market.
“Weaker imports, strong automotive demand and the likelihood of a smattering of strike-hedge buying are creating a “pricing bubble†around the domestic sheet market said a trader to media. While only half of the prior two sheet announcements have stuck thus far, we are starting to become concerned as domestic HRC is now selling at a 13% premium to imports, generally a “tipping point†level.
Market suspect that to the extent that buyers are worried about sustainability of these increases – which most feel are driven off of strike-hedge inventory buying – that we may see less import-ordering than we might otherwise have seen.â€Â
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