ArcelorMittal raises HRC prices yet again

Luxembourg-based steelmaker ArcelorMittal increased offers for hot-rolled coils (HRC) for April deliveries onwards today to €650/t ex-works across all European plants.

The producer will target €750/t ex-works for galvanised material.

The last price increase, on 19 November, pegged offers at €600/t ex-works and €700/t, respectively.

But the uptrend in prices, supported by supply tightness across the continent, is giving confidence to the mill it will be able to reach higher levels for the second quarter.

The supply scarcity has been brought on the market by reduced production after the initial outbreak of Covid-19 and subsequent lockdowns, and exacerbated by import restrictions such as the safeguards, and the European Commission's anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations on Turkish HRC.

This coincided with a revival of demand, especially from the automotive industry, after production stops in spring and early summer, which led to reduced car inventories into the autumn.

By Lora Stoyanova