Steel Markets
Home Prices Accelerate to Near Record Highs in March
Written by Sandy Williams
May 25, 2021
Home prices shot up 13.2% in March compared to the same month in 2020 and increased 12% from February. The S&P Core Logic Case-Shiller National Home Price Index reported double-digit gains for all 20 cities in the composite index except Chicago, which posted a 9% increase. Phoenix, San Diego and Seattle reported the highest year-over-year gains at 20%, 19.1%, and 18.3%, respectively.
“Housing prices continued to rise robustly in March 2021,” said Craig J. Lazzara, managing director and global head of index Investment strategy at S&P DJI. “More than 30 years of S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller data put these results into historical context. The National Composite’s 13.2% gain was last exceeded more than 15 years ago in December 2005 and lies very comfortably in the top decile of historical performance.”
The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a surge of urban apartment dwellers moving from cities to homes in the suburbs, setting off bidding wars amidst a limited supply of existing and new homes available for sale. Lazzara added that more time and data is necessary to determine if there is “a secular change in preferences, leading to a permanent shift in the demand curve for housing.”
Government data in April shows the upward trend in pricing continuing as construction costs soar and housing inventory constricts.
Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Steel Markets
Buyers say plate market rejected last round of mill hikes
Participants in the domestic steel plate market said the plate market never accepted mill-issued spot price increases.
Cliffs touts steel stamping solution to replace aluminum in automotive
Cliffs said it successfully completed a defect-free trial production of exposed steel parts using aluminum-forming equipment in collaboration with an unnamed OEM,
Hot-rolled market anticipates no change despite mill mark-ups
Domestic sheet market participants say recent spot price hikes from NLMK USA and Nucor will do little to shake-up stagnant market conditions. Price increases in the current market On Friday Oct. 24, NLMK customers learned that the producer’s hot- and cold-rolled prices increased $50 per short ton (st) and its coated products were $100/st higher. […]
Market sources say regional activity is dictating plate demand
Demand for plate on the spot market remains soft by comparison to years past. However, this week regional demand variations grew more pronounced.
AISI: Raw steel production bounces back
Domestic mill production rebounded last week, according to the latest production figures released by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). Production had been historically strong over the summer months before softening in early October.