Steel Products
Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
January 28, 2013
On Thursday I attended the American Institute for International Steel (AIIS) West Coast Dinner in Long Beach, California. Many thanks to David Phelps, president of the AIIS and his West Coast team who did a great job with the dinner and the program.
A couple of quick notes to share with our readers, Marcel Van Dijk spoke on behalf of The Port of Los Angeles. He mentioned that the ships are coming in “pretty full” today compared to the small loads of 2009. The port handles a lot of slabs and coils. The slabs are for California Steel and the coils for a wide range of customers throughout Southern California.
Marcel spoke of growth in the construction markets in Southern California especially in E-Commerce warehouse construction. There is approximately 13.0 million square feet of warehouse under construction which he believes will add 7-9 percent to the total imports of steel at the Port of LA.
There was much discussion regarding the labor agreements – which deserve special attention and SMU will do so in a separate article later this week.
On a side note – conversations with a number of the traders at the dinner found the prices on the West Coast tend to be controlled in a similar way as those on the East Coast – the ability (willingness) of service centers to raise prices to their customers. If service centers are unable, unwilling or too stubborn to raise prices then price increases tend to die on the vine.
This will be an interesting week to see if the mill sales people are given marching orders to “hold the line” on price increases or if there is “wiggle” room. From my conversations with big buyers last week they did not expect to pay all of the price increase up front and negotiation should be in play.
As always your business is truly appreciated.
John Packard
Read more from John PackardLatest in Steel Products
CRU: Excessive global supply could hit rebar mill investments in US
Following the onset of the war in Ukraine in March 2022, concerns about import availability and expectations of rising demand from President Biden’s Infrastructure Bill pushed US rebar prices to record highs. In response, a flurry of new mills and capacity expansions were announced to meet the rise in demand from growth in the construction […]
Steel buyer spirits tempered by soft spot market conditions
Steel sheet buyers report feeling bogged down by the ongoing stresses of stagnant demand, news fatigue, tariff negotiations or implementation timelines, and persistent macroeconomic uncertainty.
CRU: US stainless prices to rise on expanded S232 tariffs
Stainless prices in the US market will rise, following price increases by major US producers. Our base case scenario incorporates higher US prices in the near term, despite the initial negative reaction by the market. US stainless prices will go up in 2025 H2 and will stay elevated in 2026 as tariffs on stainless […]
Galvanized steel demand unsteady amid lingering buyer fatigue: HARDI
Uneven demand for galvanized steel in June reflects a market that remains mired in uncertainty, according to industry sources.
OCTG industry salutes Customs for catching trade crooks
The US OCTG Manufacturers Association is commending US Customs for intercepting another Thai company's attempt to illegally transship Chinese oil pipe to the US.