Market Segment
April 7, 2020
Written by Iris Speelmanns
By CRU Analyst Iris Speelmanns, from CRU’s Steel Monitor
As the Covid-19 pandemic spreads across the world, its effects on the steel industry are growing. In this weekly report, we will be closely monitoring developments in the steel industry with a focus on disrupted hot metal production and capacity utilization and these will feed into our market and price forecasts.
The current plate market squeeze has been driven by improved demand and heightened import barriers, including 50% Section 232 tariffs. But the timing of fall outages—even if they were planned—is exacerbating the supply crunch.
Metalformers’ optimism softened in the Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) September Business Conditions Report.
SMU’s latest Flat-Rolled Steel Buyers Survey shows that in a tight US market marked by long lead times, low inventories, and rising prices, foreign products continue to gain the interest of domestic buyers.
Domestic raw steel output fell to a six-month low last week after hitting a multi-year high one week earlier, according to the latest American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) figures.
The proposed Hyundai-POSCO steel mill in Louisiana has been approved for up to $1.3 billion in bond financing, according to state records and local media reports.