US stainless steel processor daily and weekly buying prices were mixed on Wednesday following strong mill demand through the week.
The weekly Davis Index for 201 solids rose by 0.2¢/lb to 55.5¢/lb delivered processor yard and decreased for 301 solids by 0.3¢/lb to 72¢/lb for single truckloads.
Scrap 309 solids fell by 1.8¢/lb to $1.049/lb delivered and moved down for 310 solids by 1.9¢/lb to $1.624/lb delivered. Scrap 330 solids fell by 0.8¢/lb to $2.625/lb delivered processor yard.
For 409/410 solids, the index increased by $1.4/gt to $615.5/gt delivered processor yard and grew by $2.8/gt to $725.5/gt for 430 solids delivered.
The stainless steel scrap market has been seeing an upward trend as domestic mill demand has been robust in tight supply. Although prices for some 300 series grades have declined, the overall movement appears to be firm. This is likely to continue into the quarter since there are signs of post-pandemic recovery, especially in manufacturing and aerospace.
The daily Davis Index for scrap 304 solids was up by 0.3¢/lb to 88.8¢/lb delivered processor yard and was up for 316 solids by 0.2¢/lb to $1.157/lb for single truckloads.
Scrap 304 turnings grew by 0.1¢/lb to 84.4¢/lb delivered and increased for 316 turnings by the same amount to $1.058/lb for single truckloads.
LME nickel prices were down by $140/mt from Tuesday with the official three-month contract settling at $18,585/mt on Wednesday. The official cash contract closed at $18,689/mt today, down by $96/mt from yesterday, and up by $380/mt from $18,309/mt on Jul 7.