The latest survey of metalforming companies by the Precision Metalforming Association revealed uncertainty about business activity during the next three months. A survey of 110 firms, in the March 2019 PMA Business Conditions Report, showed 37 percent expect improving business conditions during the period, 49 percent anticipate no change, and 14 percent expect business activity […]
A pullback in production and orders caused the Chicago Business Barometer to fall six points in March to a reading of 64.7. The barometer averaged 60.0 in the first quarter of 2019, a 3.5 percent drop from Q4 2018 and a decline of 3.3 percent compared to Q1 2018. “Although the barometer has comfortably remained above […]
Many e-commerce ventures have targeted the metals industry over the years with varying degrees of success, but one of the latest on the scene has ambitious plans to reinvent industrial business—thus its name, Reibus. Founded 10 months ago with offices in Atlanta, Reibus.com is an online business-to-business marketplace that allows buyers and sellers of steel, […]
Join us for CRU’s New York Steel Briefing on Monday, June 17, to hear our market outlook for steel, along with presentations and a panel discussion. The event is free to attend. Presentations will begin at 3:00 p.m. at the Westin New York at Times Square – 811 7th Avenue 53rd Street, New York, NY 10019 […]
Editor’s note: Steel Market Update is sharing the following Premium content with all its readers in this issue. For more information on how to upgrade to a Premium-level subscription, email info@SteelMarketUpdate.com. Growth of U.S. GDP in fourth-quarter 2018 declined to 2.2 percent from 3.4 percent in the third quarter, according to the third and final […]
One of the primary drivers of currency change is interest rate differential between currency pairs. The March 20 announcement by the Federal Reserve will take some of the steam out of dollar appreciation that occurred last year. On March 21, the Associated Press wrote, “The Federal Reserve left its key interest rate unchanged March 20 […]
Producer Price Index data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows steel losing ground to rival materials. Steel continues to become less competitive against aluminum, although the rate of change is slowing. In the case of plastic pipe compared to carbon steel pipe, steel is becoming dangerously uncompetitive. Prefabricated metal buildings are still challenged by […]
Global steel production in February reached an annual rate of 1.647 billion metric tons (Mt). Capacity is calculated to be 2.4 billion Mt and capacity utilization in February was 73.0 percent, according to the latest Steel Market Update analysis of World Steel Association data. In three months through February, Chinese production grew by 8.8 percent […]
After declining for three straight months, The Conference Board’s measure of consumer confidence surged in February, only to give back most of that gain in March. The composite value of consumer confidence in March was 124.1, down from 131.4 in February. The 3MMA (three-month moving average) decreased from 126.6 in February to 125.7 in March, […]
Steel Market Update is sharing this Premium content with Executive-level subscribers in this issue. For more information on upgrading to a Premium-level membership, email info@SteelMarketUpdate.com In April, consumer confidence gained back most of the March decline. The Conference Board’s measure of consumer confidence declined each month from November through January, surged in February, gave back […]
By CRU Chief Economist Jumana Saleheen The 13th National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s Parliament, concluded its annual two-week meeting in March. The NPC is arguably the most important policy meeting in China because it is when key macroeconomic targets are announced together with the policies required to support them. This year’s NPC has drawn attention […]
In many Chicago-area neighborhoods, teens face intense pressure to join a gang and embrace a lifestyle of crime and violence. But some find their way into an unlikely rival gang, one that has been promoting integrity and achievement for more than a century—the Boy Scouts of America. With support from the metals industry, the Boy […]
The February Architecture Billings Index, a leading indicator of construction activity, dipped to 50.3 in February from 55.6 in January. Billings growth softened last month, said the American Institute of Architects, but indicators of work in the pipeline, including inquiries into new projects and the value of new design contracts, remained positive. “Overall business conditions […]
“Your tank broke down? No problem, we’ll just 3-D print a steel replacement part.” Someday this scenario may be a reality for U.S. Army technicians in the field. Researchers at the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command’s Army Research Laboratory are working on a process that will take powdered steel and transform it with lasers […]
A bill to address the nation’s labor shortage looks to immigrant workers to fill jobs in the United States. The Workforce for an Expanding Economy Act, introduced by Rep. Lloyd Smucker (R-Pa.), would create a federal immigration visa system that would allow immigrant laborers to do year-round, non-farm work after the government approves both the […]
Orders for manufactured durable goods increased for the third month in a row, gaining 0.4 percent in January despite economists’ predictions of a decline. Orders were driven by an increase in transportation orders, especially orders for civilian aircraft, which grew 15.9 percent. Excluding the volatile transportation category, durable goods orders declined 0.1 percent. Core capital […]
Editor’s note: Jim Burg will be a panelist at Steel Market Update’s Steel Summit Conference Aug. 26-28 in Atlanta. The U.S. economy is dependent on trucks. Trucking moves 50 percent of U.S. GDP. Seventy percent of all freight can only reach consumers by truck. Trucking employs 7.3 million workers of which 3.8 million are truck […]
February’s employment report was not all bad news in spite of the surprisingly low job creation result. Net job creation in February at first glance was terrible, but our analysis of Friday’s reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) was not so bad. Job creation in February, at just 20,000, was far below […]
U.S. economic activity continued to expand in late January and February, but might have expanded more were it not for the government shutdown and harsh winter weather conditions, reports the Federal Reserve in its March 6 Beige Book. Ten of the Fed Districts reported slight-to-moderate growth, while Philadelphia and St. Louis reported flat economic conditions. […]
A much weaker than expected jobs report showed that only 20,000 jobs were added in the U.S. last month. The unemployment rate was 3.8 percent, dipping from 4.0 percent in January, according to the latest report from Commerce. Average earnings rose 0.4 percent in February for a year-over-year gain of 3.4 percent. In the construction […]
Editor’s note: Steel Market Update is sharing the following Premium content with all its readers in this issue. For more information on how to upgrade to a Premium-level subscription, email info@SteelMarketUpdate.com. U.S. economic growth slowed to 2.6 percent in fourth-quarter 2018, down from 3.4 percent in the third quarter, according to the initial estimate of […]
It is now the beginning of March and time to take a look back at the month of February to see what happened to pricing and trends that impact pricing. The SMU Pricing Momentum Indicator for flat rolled steel was adjusted to higher and our SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index rose when looked at as […]
Global manufacturing growth hit a 32-month low in February. The J.P. Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI dipped to 50.6 from 50.8 the previous month. Operating conditions expanded in the consumer and investment goods sector but deteriorated in the intermediate goods sector, said J.P. Morgan and IHS Markit. International trade was blunted as new export orders fell […]
Manufacturing activity slowed its rate of growth in February, according to the latest Manufacturing ISM Report on Business. The headline PMI fell further than expected last month, coming in at 54.2, a 2.4 point decline, and below the general consensus of 55.0. “Production expansion continued in February, but at a slower pace compared to January,” […]
Global steel production in January was at an annual rate of 1.760 billion metric tons (Mt). Capacity is calculated to be 2.4 billion Mt and capacity utilization in January was 74.0 percent, according to the latest Steel Market Update analysis of World Steel Association data. In three months through January, China grew by 7.8 percent […]
Consumer confidence rebounded in February as the negative effect of the government shutdown receded. The Conference Board measure of consumer confidence declined each month November through January and surged in February. It appears that the shutdown had a major effect on consumers’ expectations, but not so much on their perception of the present situation. The […]
The American Iron and Steel Institute and the Steel Manufacturers Association are among more than 200 companies and trade associations that have formed the USMCA Coalition to push for prompt congressional approval of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement, the updated version of NAFTA. “We look forward to working with members of the USMCA Coalition to support […]
By CRU Principal Economist Lisa Morrison U.S. economic data for December and January are beginning to come in now that the federal government is funded for the remainder of this fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30. December housing starts showed a weak end to 2018 as the total of 1.247 million units for 2018 was […]
The MNI Chicago Business Barometer gained 8 points in February, climbing to 64.7, its highest level since December 2017. The February spike in business activity followed a decline to 56.7 in January. New orders rose 15.2 points and production gained 8.5 points. Order backlogs lengthened after declining in January. Supplier delivery times declined for a […]
The secondary steel business is shrinking. Not only are quality-conscious mills producing fewer nonprime coils, there are fewer distributors in the business of buying them and fewer customers interested in using them. Steel Market Update interviewed several veterans of the secondary steel market, who all agreed the business is changing—and not always for the better. […]