Prices for cold-rolled coil and galvanized sheet in the United States held steady while market participants struggled to measure the impact of the Covid-19 disease on steel availability and demand.
Mills did not lower their offers during the week to Friday March 20, while the public-health response to the pandemic in various states expanded restrictions on activities deemed non-essential. Market participants said the virus-fighting measures had not yet directly affected steel demand or mill output. But the suspension of production at US automotive plants - announced in the middle of this past week - ultimately would slash demand for sheet products if the stoppages persist. Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment...