Bloomberg reported that Tokyo Steel Manufacturing Co has raised prices for all products for the first time in four months to pass on increased material costs to buyers.
As per report, prices for H beams, used in construction, were raised by JPY 8,000 or 12% to JPY 75,000 per tonne for January 2011 contracts. Hot rolled coil prices will increase by 14% to JPY 67,000 per tonne from JPY 59,000 a month earlier.
Tokyo Steel said that prices across the company's range of products will increase by between JPY 6,000 and JPY 8,000. The cost of scrap metal at the steelmaker's Okayama plant, in southwestern Japan, has risen by JPY 7,500 a tonne or 26% since October 21st 2010.
Mr Naoto Ohori MD of Tokyo Steel said that "I didn't expect raw material prices to rise at such a pace. We can only hedge increased costs by raising prices
Tokyo Steel also increased prices of plates and wire rods each by 8.8% to JPY 74,000 a tonne for January contracts as compared with the preceding month.
