Nucor is the first mill to react to the dropping zinc prices by advising their customers late on Friday of their intention to revise their galvanized coating weight extras. In a letter from the various mill sales and marketing managers the mill told their customers their new coating extras will be in effect on all orders acknowledged to ship the week ending July 10, 2010 Read more ...

Early indications from the Chicago Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for the steel business are mixed. The PMI continues to be above 50.0 but some of the key data points are moving in the wrong direction Read more ...

So far this week it has been quiet. All is quiet on the steel front as prices have either settled in at their new levels or, in the cases of cold rolled, may have actually tightened up a pinch. The scrap market has been quiet as well as we wait for mill buyers to determine their needs and make their next round of purchases which should happen next week Read more ...

Total steel imports (all products) were flat for the month of April 2010 compared to the previous month, according to preliminary Census data released today. Imports totaled 1,880,081 metric tons (2,072,432 short tons) for the month of April compared to the 1,863,740 metric tons (2,054,419 short tons) received during the month of March Read more ...

Chinese steel mills have expressed their reluctance to accept iron ore prices of potentially 160 U.S. dollars per ton proposed by Vale and BHP in the third quarter, saying that the price hike will create carnage in the nation's steel industry Read more ...

In an effort to “lower costs” an ArcelorMittal spokesperson has advised Steel Market Update of their intention to “take offline” or idle two blast furnaces at their Indiana Harbor facility. At the same time they will bring up a large blast furnace – the “D” furnace at Burns Harbor Read more ...

Severstal NA has officially announced their intention to sell the balance of the Northern Steel Group assets to Esmark, Inc. Read more ...

Flat rolled steel buyers and sellers continue to be "slightly optimistic" according to Steel Market Update's most recent Market Survey. SMU's Buyer's Sentiment Index registered a +7.2% and the index has been in "optimistic" territory for approximately six weeks Read more ...

Steel Market Update received a copy of the following letter which the Steel Manufacturer's Association (SMA) sent to U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Locke and the U.S. Trade Ambassador Kirk. The purpose of the letter is to advise the U.S. government that the SMA members are opposed to Anshan Iron & Steel participation in the building of any new steel mills in the United States Read more ...

Severstal NA and Aurora Resurgence, a Los Angeles private equity group, finalized the sale of selected assets of the Northern Steel Group to Aurora. The Northern Steel Group (NSG) is the service center chain which was acquired by Severstal NA when they purchased Wheeling Pittsburgh Steel, Warren Consolidated and Sparrows Point from Esmark Read more ...

Anshan Steel (also known as Angang) the fourth largest producing mill in China has signed a letter of intent with the Steel Development Company to form a joint venture in the EAF rebar mill under construction in Amory, Mississippi Read more ...

As Steel Market Update has been reporting for some time, steel prices have reached a plateau, and there are even some signs of easing. This is clearly evident in the US, especially on the flat rolled side, but also in many areas overseas, including China Read more ...

Flat rolled steel prices have begun to move lower over the past couple of weeks. Earlier this week Steel Market Update changed our steel price momentum indicator from "neutral" to "lower" Read more ...

Steel Market Update has learned from our west coast steel sources that California Steel Industries (CSI) has rolled over (kept prices the same) their flat rolled steel prices from June production into July production Read more ...

There are a number of union contracts with steel mills in North America which are set to expire this year - Severstal NA (Warren, Wheeling, Sparrows Point), AK Steel (Ashland), Essar Steel Algoma and U.S. Steel (Hamilton Works) Read more ...

Ohio Governor Ted Strickland today joined TMK IPSCO Koppel Tubular corporate representatives and state and local officials to open the company’s new steel pipe finishing facility in Brookfield in Trumbull County Read more ...

On Friday, May 7, 2010 – The Nucor Sheet Metal Group of Nucor Steel informed their flat rolled steel contract customers the mill was lowering the June Raw Material Surcharge (RMS) by $15 per ton Read more ...

In an effort to clear up waters which may have become slightly “muddy” over the past couple of days SMU contacted a number of our contacts at Severstal NA to better understand their recent steel pricing change as it relates to their contract customers out of their Sparrows Point facility. Many in the trade press have begun calling the move an iron ore surcharge Read more ...

Buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel products continued to upward march registering a second positive or “optimistic” reading of +8.7 as measured by our SMU Market Survey conducted late last week Read more ...