-Prices and mill books are weakening as predicted.  Mill salesmen are actively looking to fill “holes” in supposedly strong order books.  There is a disparity between producers – those who are heavily automotive and/or OCTG and those who are not. 

– Pricing in northern Europe has firmed up as of late and the gap between USA and EURO pricing has closed significantly – especially with prices easing in the USA.  China is soft but stable. 

-We expect average HRC pricing to fall to $680-700 within the next week. 

-For now the EURO has stabilized against the Dollar and hovers around $1.30.   Expectations continue for the scrap market to be weak for the next several weeks. 

-If USA HRC reaches $640-$660 look for buying opportunities to arise as demand is fairly strong and at these levels, import will make less sense.   Currently we expect prices to dip for March/April and May and then rally into the second half of the year.    

-The CRU index is currently well behind the actual domestic market