NEW YORK — Nucor Corp. has lowered its base price for merchant bars and structural products by $41 per ton and its raw materials surcharge by $9 per ton effective with Feb. 15 shipments, for a total drop of $50 per ton ($2.50 per hundredweight), the steelmaker said in a Feb. 14 letter to customers.

The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker reduced its base price "in order to better respond to market conditions," such as imports and domestic discounting, it said.

The drop in the scrap surcharge—based on AMM’s consumer buying price for shredded automotive scrap in Chicago, which settled down $9 per ton earlier this month (amm.com, Feb. 7)—is the first since December. The mill’s scrap surcharge for March is $215 per ton ($10.75 per hundredweight).