Detroit mills cede ground, pay more for scrap

Mar 06, 2013 | 05:13 PM | Sean Davidson

Tags  ferrous scrap, scrap prices, Sean Davidson

NEW YORK — Steel mills in the Detroit region broke the deadlock with scrap sellers March 6 after conceding to supplier demands, settling prices and tons within hours of putting out firm bids at higher prices than they originally targeted.

Although a few mills in the overall Midwest region announced early March 6 that they would secure volumes off contract or on the basis of to-be-determined pricing, mills in Detroit opted for a different route: bids up $40 per gross ton from February’s levels. Just a day earlier, buyers had attempted to hold their ground at up $30 while dealers sought increases of $40 or more from February.

"The plus-$30 was only being pushed by one mill, which is light," said a source at one large supplier, noting that the final $40-per-ton increase helps bring Detroit prices back in line.

"Detroit came down $20 last month when surrounding areas were down $5 to $15. We should have been plus $45 to $50 to offset the differential. Demand is good," he said.....