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    Final Thoughts

    Michael Cowden, SMU Team

    November 6, 2026

    Final Thoughts: Steel prices soar despite stock market turmoil, Republican shellacking

    Written by Michael Cowden

    Republicans got shellacked in the midterms on Tuesday. Equities got shellacked on Wall St. on Thursday. And steel prices continued upward as if nothing had happened.

    I asked a couple of weeks ago whether the supply squeeze we’re seeing now is more intense than what we saw in 2021. It’s becoming increasingly clear that it is by most metrics, with the notable exception of price.

    Michael Cowden

    Michael Cowden is editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. Cowden has covered the steel industry since 2007. He specializes in flat-rolled steel but has also reported on steel long products, steel pipe and tube, and aluminum. Before joining SMU, Cowden held reporting jobs at Fastmarkets AMM in Chicago, the Associated Press in Pittsburgh, and the Cambodia Daily in Phnom Penh. He has also worked as a copy editor and in marketing at the University of Chicago Press. Cowden has a BA in English from the University of Chicago and an MSJ journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Contact him at michael@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7872.

    Read more from Michael Cowden

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