Platts proposes to update specs of Mexican flat steel assessments, publish them weekly

S&P Global Platts proposes to update the specifications of the Mexican flat steel assessments to align them with the current industry standards, and to increase the frequency of publication from monthly to weekly, effective Feb. 12, 2021.

QUALITY: Platts has observed that the shift in trade flows has led to a change in quality and dimensional specifications in the Mexican domestic hot-rolled and cold-rolled coil markets. Platts proposes to amend the quality and dimensions of the Mexican domestic hot-rolled coil delivered Northeast, to SAE 1006-1008 from current DIN EN 10111 DD 12 grade, and dimensions to 48 inches, caliber 11-14, from width 1080-1128 mm and thickness 5-7 mm. In the case of Mexican domestic cold-rolled coil delivered Northeast (SB01403), quality would change to SAE 1006-1008 from current ASTM 606, and dimensions to 36-48 inches, caliber 18-24 from width 1000-1300 mm and thickness 1.0-1.3 mm.

DELIVERY TIMING: Trade data shows that delivery lead times for both HRC and CRC have increased. Platts therefore proposes to expand the delivery window for its assessments to 4-8 weeks forward from currently assessed 2-3 weeks from the date of publication.

VOLUME: Platts invites market participants' feedback on the standard volume for a spot negotiation used in the market. The Platts assessments currently reflect spot parcels between 1,000 and 2,000 mt, with volumes outside this range subject to normalization. Platts proposes to expand this range to 500-2,000 mt spot parcels to reflect the lack of price differential in this range.

LOCATION: Platts proposes to specify the delivery location as Monterrey, Northeast Mexico. Deliveries in a wider Northeast region may be reflected in the assessment after normalization.

FREQUENCY: Platts proposes to increase the assessment frequency of both products to weekly to better capture spot market liquidity and price movements in the flats domestic market in Mexico. The assessments would be reflect spot prices as of 4:30 p.m. BRT time Friday and would follow Brazil publication schedule.

Platts assesses both Mexican domestic HRC and CRC in Pesos/mt, and also publishes the price in $/mt, based on a daily currency conversion rate.

Please send any feedback, comments or questions to LatAmMetalsteam@spglobal.com and pricegroup@spglobal.com by Dec. 12.

For written comments, please provide a clear indication if comments are not intended for publication by Platts for public viewing.

Platts will consider all comments received and will make comments not marked as confidential available upon request.