Copying and distributing are prohibited without permission of the publisher

NAS’ partial stainless price hike may foil peer mills

February 03, 2012 - 20:57 GMT Location: New York

KEYWORDS: NAS , flat-rolled stainless , 304 , 316

North American Stainless Inc.’s (NAS) decision to increase prices for only some flat-rolled stainless products for March could throw other mills’ across-the-board hikes into question, distributor sources told AMM.

The Ghent, Ky.-based company announced Jan. 27 that it would only raise prices for its 201, 301 and 430 grades, effective with shipments March 1 (AMM, Jan. 30).

"That’s only a very small part of what they do," a Midwestern distributor said, adding that a majority of NAS’ sales are in the 304 and 316 grades, generally considered to be the most widely sold stainless items domestically.

NAS’ partial hike...

All material subject to strictly enforced copyright laws. © Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC.

Please log in using your online subscriber details.
Your username will be your registered email address with Metal Bulletin.

If you aren't a subscriber yet, feel free to take a seven day free trial, or subscribe using the instructions below.

A standard subscription include one year's worth of news and prices. You can also upgrade to the full archive and benefit from more than 13 years of intelligence. Start your subscription today.

Free trial

Taking a free trial will give you open access to Metal Bulletin online news, prices, archived content and email alert service for the next seven days. Start your free trial today.

Free trial

Already have an account?

Stainless & Special Steels

May 23, 2012 14:57 NAS cuts stainless extra for June
May 23, 2012 14:43 Chinese tungsten ore output drops 8% in April
May 23, 2012 11:10 CHINA STEEL WRAP: Rebar prices at seven-month low
May 23, 2012 10:45 Chinese nickel pig iron production may drop significantly in June
May 23, 2012 00:47 Temco restart may crimp US manganese alloy tags

Comment & analysis

EXPERT VIEW FROM ERNST & YOUNG: Horror week favours the brave

Seven days is a long time in the investment world, but last week must have felt longer than most.
COMMENT: When super-cycle poster child BHP Billiton trims its plans...

BHP Billiton is one of the poster children for the commodities super-cycle: a mining company whose immense upstream assets in copper and iron ore have fed the industrialisation of China since the early years of the 21st century and enabled it to return $52 billion to shareholders between 2001 and 2011.
LORD COPPER: There is nothing to fear after JP Morgan loss ...

So, here we go again. Another bank, another huge trade gone bad. This one doesn’t even appear to have been a case of rogue trading; a whole desk seems to have been operating with the full knowledge of the management and/or risk committee.