✅ Key Takeaways
✅ Nucor raised its CSP HRC base price to $990/ton (and $1,040/ton at CSI) effective the week of February 23, 2026 - a $10/ton jump signaling accelerating confidence in domestic steel pricing power.
✅ Carbon steel imports have plunged to multi-year lows, with flat rolled imports down 42.1% for all of 2025 and coated sheet hitting its lowest daily import rate since December 2010 - dramatically reducing foreign competition for domestic mills.
✅ Lead times are stretching to 4-8 weeks as mills fill orders at current price levels, backed by robust backlogs, steady demand from infrastructure and data centers, and the protective umbrella of 50% Section 232 steel tariffs.
