HOW INDEXES HAVE CHANGED

Gerald L. Farrar Contributing Editor Nelson-Farrar indexes for finished steels changed randomly during the period 1986-1989. Generally speaking, the alloy steels changed less than carbon steel products. Alloy bars started the period with an index value of 826.3 and finished at 845.2. Alloy sheets stood at index value of 471.7 in early 1986, and at 494.1 in late 1989. Stainless strip varied from 484.4 to 554.2 over the same period.

April 1, 1991

Gerald L. Farrar
Contributing Editor

Nelson-Farrar indexes for finished steels changed randomly during the period 1986-1989. Generally speaking, the alloy steels changed less than carbon steel products.

Alloy bars started the period with an index value of 826.3 and finished at 845.2. Alloy sheets stood at index value of 471.7 in early 1986, and at 494.1 in late 1989. Stainless strip varied from 484.4 to 554.2 over the same period.

Index for cold-rolled sheets was 932.1 during the first quarter of 1986, and stood at 1088.4 during the last quarter of 1989. During the same period, structural plates started the four-year period at an index of 962.4, and ended at 1136.5.

Composite index for steel products varied from 877.4 in the first quarter of 1986 to 1012.9 during the last quarter of 1989. The composite category includes all steel-mill products. This analysis shows relative stability in the cost of finished steels over the 1986-1989 period.