Final Thoughts
Evraz NA To Lay Off Workers in Canada
January 31, 2023
Evraz North America Inc. said it would lay off workers in Canada because of high volumes of low-priced imports.
The company noted that “unfairly traded imports” continue to negatively impact its Canadian operations.
“Due to these imports, and starting next month, Evraz North America will make production adjustments that will regrettably result in layoffs at its Canadian facilities,” Evraz NA said in a statement provided to SMU.
More than 100 workers will be temporarily laid off at operations in Regina, Saskatchewan, and more than 30 employees will be impacted in Camrose, Alberta, according to a report from Canada’s CTV, which said Evraz NA plans to reduce its two-inch and 24-inch pipe production.
The Canadian Steel Producers Association (CSPA) voiced concern over the situation.
“Foreign imports continue to enter into the Canadian market at an alarming rate. Currently 41% of steel used in Canada is coming from carbon-intensive offshore producers,” CSPA said in a statement.
CSPA urged the use of trade tools, “such as normal values and retroactive duties — to stop unfair trade practices that hurt the domestic industry, its employees, and communities.”
In November, the US Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) finalized new antidumping rates for Evraz NA large-diameter welded pipe from Canada. It set a weighted-average dumping margin of 36.02% for Evraz’s shipments vs. a previous rate of 7.9%.
By Ethan Bernard, ethan@steelmarketupdate.com
Latest in Final Thoughts
Final thoughts
Our spot price is little changed this week after moving sharply lower last week on the heels of Nucor’s unexpected price cut. Here’s one thought on that trend: Nucor's weekly HR price (aka, its “Consumer Spot Price” or CSP) has to date functioned almost more like a monthly price.
Final thoughts
What's the tea in the steel industry this week? Here's the latest SMU gossip column! Just kidding... kind of. Yes, some of the comments we receive in our weekly flat-rolled market steel buyers' survey are honestly too much to put into print. Some make us laugh. Some make us cringe. Some are cryptic. Most are serious. We appreciate them all. Below are some highlights from our survey results this week. Some of the comments that we can share with you are also included, in italics, in the buyers' own words, with minimal editing on our part.
Final thoughts
Last week we wrote about a brief lull in price movement, labeling it a period of wait and see. It did, in fact, turn out to be pretty brief. This week... things are little bit different. Perhaps right now we are more in a period of "hope and pray" or "Here we go, hold on to your hats."
Final thoughts
Unless you've been under a rock, you know by know that Nucor's published HR price for this week is $760 per short ton, down $65/st from the company’s $825/st a week ago. I could use more colorful words. But I think it’s safe to say that most of the market was not expecting this. For starters, US sheet mills never announce price decreases. (OK, not never. It has come to my attention that Severstal North America rescinded a price increase back on Feb. 14, 2012. And it caused quite the ruckus.)
Final thoughts
Is it just me, or does it seem like the summer doldrums might have arrived a little early? I could be wrong there. It’s possible we could see a jump in prices should buyers need to step back into the market to restock. I’ll be curious to see what service center inventories are when we update those figures on May 15. In the meantime, just about everyone we survey thinks HR prices have peaked or soon will. (See slide 17 in the April 26 survey.) Lead times have flattened out. And some of you tell me that you’re starting to see signs of them pulling back. (We’ll know more when we update our lead time data on Thursday.)