Nasdaq logs first trade on HRC contract in US

In the contract’s first block trade, a broker traded 25 lots (representing 500 short tons) for January 2019 at $730 per ton.

“This trade on the first day of the contract’s launch is an encouraging sign for the future of this important ferrous contract,” NFX chief operating officer Steve Sladoje said. “We’re excited to see activity on day one.”

The contract is tied to Fastmarkets AMM’s daily US Midwest hot-rolled coil index, which fell to $36.73 per hundredweight ($734.60 per short ton) on December 14 from $37.10 per cwt previously.

The new NFX contract is part of a suite of contracts underpinned by Fastmarkets’ ferrous pricing, along with NFX’s US Midwest shredded steel scrap contract, the CME’s US Midwest busheling ferrous scrap contract and the Singapore Exchange’s high-grade iron ore 65% contract.

NFX’s specifications for the HRC futures contract, the first daily HRC contract in the US, can be found here. The HRC futures contract also complements NFX’s existing US Midwest shredded scrap contract, which is also tied to Fastmarkets’ prices and which has recently seen increased activity.  

Nat Rudarakanchana in Chicago contributed to this report.