Steel Markets

New Home Sales End 2020 on an Upward Trend
Written by Sandy Williams
January 28, 2021
Sales of new single-family homes jumped 1.6 percent from November to December, according to the latest Commerce data. Sales were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 842,000, 15.2 percent above the December 2019 estimate.
Median sales price was $355,900 and average sales price was $394,900. The seasonally adjusted inventory at the end of December was 302,000 homes, a 4.3 month supply at the current sales rate.
December sales were highest in the Midwest, with a monthly gain of 30.6 percent, followed by the West with 8.8 percent growth. Sales declined 6.1 percent in the Northeast and 5.1 percent in the South.
Sales soared 18.8 percent to an estimated 811,000 homes sold in 2020, driven by low mortgage rates and low supply of existing homes. Zillow Economist Matthew Speakman suggests that some buyers may be interested in “never-lived-in” homes due to the COVID-19 crisis.
“The supply of new homes for sale has been picking up lately, but remains low compared to historic norms — which is likely to incentivize builders to increase their activity, particularly when demand for housing remains solid,” said Speakman. “Expect the future permit and starts pipeline to be quite full this year. With a banner year in the books, today’s new home sales report set the stage for a solid start to 2021.”

Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Steel Markets

Hot-rolled coil buyers continue seeking certainty
Steel market participants contend that buyers will remain in “wait-and-see" mode until some market stability is restored.

Latin American steel advocates warn on cheap import flood
Subsidized Chinese steel imports and cheap steel products from Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) entering Latin American (LATAM) are threatening the region's steel market.

CRU: Steel prices fall amid global demand weakness
The forceful headwinds bearing down on steel markets across the globe have created demand challenges and sent prices southward. The US, however, challenged the global trend.

Hot-rolled price hikes garner mixed reactions from the market
Several steel market sources say they were blindsided when mills increased spot prices for hot-rolled coils this week.

Steel market participants mull the impact of US/Mexico S232 negotiations
Steel market participants learned that negotiations between the US and Mexico include discussions about Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum despite President Trump’s June 3 proclamation increasing the tariffs from 25% to 50% for all steel and aluminum imports—except for those from the UK.