Final Thoughts

April 20, 2018

I was asked if plate price momentum was also at neutral as we had just adjusted our flat rolled price momentum indicator away from higher to the neutral designation. To be honest, we haven’t actually incorporated plate into having its own index and it probably needs one. Plate prices don’t always move in sync with flat rolled and we would give it a “higher” designation right now rather than a neutral one.

Plate continues to be on allocation, and we are hearing numbers as high as $1,020-$1,030 once the next month is opened. We will dig deeper into this subject this week as we go out and canvass market participants for both flat rolled and plate products.

Late last week, ArcelorMittal USA put through an “internal” $50 per ton ($2.50/cwt) price increase. The word from their customers was they had been at $42.50/cwt or below for some time while the other mills were at $42.50/cwt or higher. We had captured some of the mills collecting as much as $900 per ton ($45.00/cwt) from their spot customers. The move by AM takes them to the same levels as most of the other mills ($42.50/cwt-$45.00/cwt).

We reached 350 registrations for our SMU Steel Summit Conference on Friday. We also booked a new speaker on Friday – John Axelberg, President & CEO of General Stamping & Metalworks, Inc. He will be joining our manufacturing panel. I will have more about Mr. Axelberg and the other three companies on this year’s panel later this week. You can learn more about our agenda, hotels, convention center, attending companies currently registered, costs and how to register on our website: www.SteelMarketUpdate.com/Events/Steel-Summit or you can contact us at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com or 772-932-7538.

We are also two-thirds sold for our June 5 & 6 Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshop, which will be held in Memphis, Tenn., and will include a once-in-a-lifetime tour of two Nucor plants: Nucor Hickman and Nucor-Yamato. Attendees will have a rare opportunity to view a flat-rolled mill, beam mill and a Castrip mill. You can find details on our website: www.SteelMarketUpdate.com/Events/Steel101 or you can contact me at 800-432-3475 for more information.

Tim Triplett and I will be representing Steel Market Update at this year’s Metals Industry Boy Scout Dinner in Chicago on May 10. If you would like to chat with one (or both) of us ahead of the Boy Scout dinner, please send an email to info@SteelMarketUpdate.com.

As always, your business is truly appreciated by all of us at Steel Market Update.

John Packard, Publisher