• Skip to main content

    Market Segment

    U.S. Steel Bullish on the Market and its Future with Big River Steel

    Written by Sandy Williams


    “What a difference a quarter can make,” exclaimed U.S. Steel President and CEO David Burritt during the opening of the fourth-quarter 2020 earnings call. The company posted positive net earnings of $49 million following a net loss of $234 million in the third quarter and a net loss of $688 million in Q4 2019. Net sales for the latest quarter were $2.6 billion.

    “The team at U.S. Steel created unprecedented value in the trough by continuing our transformation into a world-competitive, Best of Both steel producer,” said Burritt. “With Big River Steel now fully part of the U.S. Steel portfolio, we are well positioned to drive significant earnings growth while delivering our customers an unmatched value proposition. Our future starts now and we cannot wait to show the world the value that the only Best of Both steel company can create.”   

    Latest in Market Segment

    Canadian minister urges probe of Cliffs’ handling of Stelco

    Canadian Minister of Industry Melanie Joly has urged that Canada’s Competition Bureau examine Cleveland-Cliffs’ conduct in the Canadian marketplace following its Stelco acquisition. Minister Joly sent a letter to Jeanne Pratt, Commissioner of Competition, on Friday, regarding testimony Cliffs Chairman and CEO Lourenco Goncalves made to the US Congressional Steel Caucus, and a subsequent interview to the CBC. oly said that in the Caucus testimony, “Goncalves stated that his company had acquired Stelco to ‘block’ it from selling into the US market.”

    U.S. Steel, USW deadlocked in labor contract talks despite Cliffs deal

    The United Steelworkers (USW) accused U.S. Steel of “dragging their feet” in labor contract negotiations on Friday. The USW said in a text to members that it delivered a proposed labor contract to U.S. Steel on Oct. 30 and that the company asked to meet with union negotiators the following Thursday and Friday. “When we met (Thursday), they gave us no response on wages or the majority of the outstanding items,” the USW said, adding that U.S. Steel’s lead negotiator unexpectedly left the bargaining table on Friday.

    Drilling activity ticks up in the US, eases in Canada

    The latest tally of active drilling rigs moved marginally higher in the US, up for the first time in five weeks. Activity eased in Canada this week, according to oil and gas rig count data published by Baker Hughes. The US rig count increased to 604 rigs this week, setting an 18-month high watermark. Compared with this time last year, 56 more rigs are in operation today. Canada’s count declined by three to 223 rigs this week, easing for the first time in three weeks. Activity is up from the same week of 2025, with 32 more rigs operating today.

    Cliffs, USW reach tentative four-year labor deal

    Cleveland-Cliffs and the United Steelworkers (USW) announced on Friday that they had reached a tentative deal for a new, four-year labor pact. The Cleveland-based steelmaker said the agreement covered approximately 12,000 USW members in Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, and Michigan. The company noted that the deal included workers not only at its steel plants but also its mining operations—in other words, all of its USW labor contracts up for renewal. “Our USW-represented employees do work that is essential to Cleveland-Cliffs and to our country. These agreements recognize their contributions and give us the stability we need to invest, compete and continue strengthening American steelmaking," Cliffs Chairman and CEO Lourenco Goncalves said in a statement.

    Nucor temporarily halts secondary offers, sending shock waves through a tight market

    Nucor opened its secondary and excess product bid list across all its flat-rolled mills on Monday, as it typically does, market participants told SMU. But by Wednesday, when bidding was scheduled to close, Nucor notified buyers it would not be awarding any bids this week. The abrupt close sent a shock through the secondary market, they said. "Nucor pulled their excess and secondary lists this week and is not selling anything," a Midwest buyer said.