The price changes for sections produced in Scunthorpe and Teesside, and for reversing mill plate manufactured in Dalzell and Clydebridge, Scotland, as well as in Scunthorpe, will apply to all newly booked UK deliveries from 4 October 2009. Commodity plate will rise by £30/tonne while non-commodity plate will increase by £40/tonne.

The price rises reflect improving demand as well as recent increases in raw materials costs, such as scrap.

Martin Maley, Corus Commercial Director for Long Products, said: “We are seeing more robust demand for our product range, including sections and plate. Demand has been improving from low levels, particularly in the US and Asia, though the rate of recovery in the UK and Europe is expected to be slower. We also believe destocking is nearing its end in many product areas.”

Corus has been working hard with its key customers to achieve better-balanced inventories. This partnership approach has helped to smooth out spikes and troughs in orders and production.

                                                                  Ends

For further information, please contact:
Bob Jones 0207 717 4532


Notes
Corus is Europe's second largest steel producer. With main steelmaking operations primarily in the UK and the Netherlands, Corus supplies steel and related services to the construction, automotive, packaging, mechanical engineering and other markets worldwide. Corus is a subsidiary of Tata Steel, one of the world’s top ten steel producers. Following the acquisition of Corus in 2007, the combined enterprise has an aggregate crude steel capacity of more than 28 million tonnes and approximately 80,000 employees across four continents.