STAINLESS IS ALSO PARTICIPATING IN THE STEEL PRICE BOOM

摘要

MEPS - World Stainless Steel Product Prices currently stand at close to their highest point of the last few years. Comparing transaction prices over our reference period from January 1997, todays values in the EU, Japan and USA are all well above their previous best, which was reached in mid 2000. In the EU, the grade 304 hot rolled coil transaction price, equivalent to 2240 US dollars per tonne, is up by more than 46 percent since this time last year. In the USA, likewise, the current price of 2136 US dollars per tonne is 46 percent above its level in 2003. In Japan, the hot rolled coil price of 2306 US dollars per tonne is 58 percent higher than in August a year ago-showing the success that mills have had in passing on alloy costs to their customers.