Nucor Corp. announced it would raise its raw materials surcharge on flat rolled steel shipped to $100 per ton, starting next month. The company cited soaring ferrous scrap prices as the reason for the decision.
The surcharge is a sharp increase from the $60 per ton surcharge this month.
The announcement by Nucor follows a number of other steel companies, both integrated as well as minimill, to push through much higher surcharges. The reason for the increase has been the high ferrous scrap prices, which have climbed by more than 50 percent over the past several months.
In an article in Reuters, John Ferriola, Nucor executive vice president for sheet products, noted, "You have the situation in China, with their huge increase in demand and the cutting of their exports of coke. You've got the Russians who are cutting virtually all of their exports on scrap. You've got a decreasing dollar value. And you've got demand for scrap from integrated producers increasing because their coke availability has decreased -- all at the same time. It's the perfect storm."