US sheet steel sources said Wednesday that US Steel's $25/st flat-rolled increase Monday will have limited market impact until more producers hop on board -- likely after the Fourth of July holiday.
A competing mill said the increase was a case of the company "putting down a floor" on hot-rolled pricing and halting further price erosion.
A service center source agreed that the increase -- which puts US Steel list prices in a rough range between $685-705/st -- was "just something to try and stop the negative pressure."
He added, however, that at least one competing mill told him he had 48 hours to place an order to hold "current pricing."
A second service center source said the same competing mill has temporarily pulled all offers from the table and is waiting for scrap to settle before making a decision on whether to implement a price increase.
The source said a possible demand-side justification for a price increase also exists, as line pipe demand appears to be picking up significantly.
One trader, however, maintained that US Steel's increase -- even if it garners additional mill support -- could fall flat.
"I'm looking at the market, and from what I've seen recently, it's not one of stronger pricing," he said, calling service inventories "on the tight side of average."
"I'm not sure that the market, as far as transactions go, can support higher numbers," he said.
Platts held its HRC pricing Wednesday to $660-680/st and its cold-rolled pricing to $790-805/st. All prices are normalized to a Midwest (Indiana) ex-works basis.
Source:Platts
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