Prices for hot-rolled coil in the United States dropped sharply despite production cuts by domestic flat-rolled mills, with market participants pessimistic about the future of the industry and doubtful that the supply cut would be enough to restore the virus-dampened demand.
Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index, fob mill US was calculated at $27.08 per hundredweight ($541.60 per short ton) on Friday March 27, down by 3.4% ($0.94 per cwt) from $28.02 per cwt on Thursday March 26 and down by 3.5% ($0.98 per cwt) from $28.06 per cwt a week earlier on March 20. Inputs were received between $24 and $28 per cwt, a narrowed and lowered range...