Round two of NAFTA negotiations wound up today, with no resolution in sight. Among the many issues being debated, the topic of rules-of-origin is proving to be contentious for Canadian and Mexican negotiators, as well as auto producers. U.S. negotiators are proposing that U.S. content in NAFTA-eligible vehicles be raised to between 35-50 percent, according […]
My final thoughts are going to be extremely brief this evening as I live close to the Atlantic Ocean in south Florida and there is a category 5 hurricane thinking about heading our way. So, we are in preparation mode and will move north and wait to see if it veers further west and into […]
Half of the 36 Key Steel Market Indicators released in August are historically positive, while only 19 percent are negative, and the balance fall within the normal range, in Steel Market Update’s view. Along with May, when the data was about the same, this is the best outlook since we began our analysis in January […]
The Commerce Department has extended the deadline for determinations in the anti-circumvention investigation of corrosion-resistant steel from China to Feb. 15, 2018. On Nov. 14, 2016, the anti-circumvention case was initiated on CORE steel products from the People’s Republic of China in response to a request from steel companies ArcelorMittal USA, Nucor, U.S. Steel, AK […]
Over the past three days, Steel Market Update (SMU) had all hands on deck for our 7th SMU Steel Summit Conference. The conference was once again held at the Georgia International Convention Center next to the Atlanta International Airport. We had record attendance with 661 executives registered compared to 434 last year. There were 309 […]
Good evening from Atlanta, site of our 7th SMU Steel Summit Conference. We announced this morning that attendance for this conference is a new record. We are pleased to announce we registered 661 manufacturing, steel and industry executives for this year’s conference, breaking last year’s 434 record. Our “Pre-Summit” Conference program on Monday attracted approximately […]
It’s the night before the start of our 7th SMU Steel Summit Conference in Atlanta. We are prepared and ready to go, but our thoughts and prayers are with those trapped in Houston and the surrounding communities in Texas. There are a great many people registered for our conference who are coming from the areas […]
I am now in Atlanta and the workload and my focus, and that of Ray Culley, Brett Linton and Diana, are all on organizing every minute of the SMU Steel Market Update program, which begins at 2 PM ET on Monday. There are always a few hiccups along the way… something to make your day […]
In Steel Market Update’s (SMU) latest flat rolled steel market analysis, manufacturing companies and steel service centers are sending mixed messages regarding how flat rolled steel distributors are treating their spot end customers. Twenty-one percent of the manufacturing companies responding to last week’s flat rolled steel market trends questionnaire reported service centers were lowering prices, […]
Over the last few weeks, the price of zinc has risen to over $1.41 per pound on the London Metal Exchange, and I thought it was time for an update on a series of articles I’ve written on the actual metallic cost of coating steel with zinc. To do the calculation, I use a spreadsheet […]
Rules of origin for automobiles continue to confound NAFTA negotiators. Currently, 62.5 percent of an automobile must be made in North America to qualify for duty-free status within the NAFTA region. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer wants to push that percentage higher to reduce content coming from Europe and Asia. However, Lighthizer’s obsession with reducing the […]
U.S. Steel’s Section 337 allegations of trans-shipment of Chinese steel products are being challenged by seven Chinese steel mills. U.S. Steel alleges that respondents in the case are misrepresenting country of origin in steel shipments in order to elude antidumping and countervailing duties. Baosteel Group, HeSteel Group, Masteel Group, Shougang Steel Group, Shagang Steel Group, […]
The United States and Canadian leaders of the United Steelworkers released a joint statement on Wednesday advocating NAFTA rules-of-origin, strong labor and environmental rights. United Steelworkers International President Leo W. Gerard and Canadian National Director Ken Neumann urge strengthening regional rules-of-origin for autos, auto parts and manufactured products, including requirements for melting and pouring steel […]
I am stuck between a rock and a hard place. We are trying to accommodate everyone who wants to attend our 2017 SMU Steel Summit Conference even though we are technically sold out. We did manage to loosen up a few seats and those were gobbled up the moment we let people know they were […]
No one was surprised when major U.S. steel mills announced a $30 per ton price hike on flat rolled and plate this week. The price hikes were widely expected. But a majority (58 percent) of respondents to SMU’s latest flat roll market trends questionnaire will be surprised if the higher prices stick. Some predict the […]
Despite the ongoing delay in Washington, six of 10 respondents to SMU’s latest flat roll market trends questionnaire believe the Trump administration will eventually put new restrictions on foreign steel imports based on Section 232 national security concerns. Even more, 74 percent, believe the slowdown in the Section 232 decision is opening the door to […]
The Steel Market Update (SMU) Service Center Inventories Apparent Excess/Deficit forecast provided last month showed that the deficit in inventories being held by flat rolled distributors would shrink. We have worked with the MSCI carbon flat rolled shipment and inventory data and our model indicates the deficit did indeed shrink and is very close to […]
Tomorrow is the full eclipse of the sun in many areas of the country. Where I live in southern Florida, the sun will be 81 percent covered. About four hours drive north of here will be in the high 90 percent range. If you are lucky enough to be in an area where a total […]
Steel Market Update (SMU) is releasing our SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index for mid-August. The Index measures how buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel feel about their company’s ability to be successful both in the current market environment, as well as three to six months into the future. Overall, our Indexes remains optimistic. However, […]
Flat rolled lead times, the amount of time it takes for the steel mills to produce an order if placed today, have flattened out and are essentially unchanged over the past few months, according to data collected by Steel Market Update from manufacturers and steel service centers earlier this week. On Monday, Steel Market Update […]
Steel buyers and sellers reported mills slightly more open to steel price discussions, based on responses this week from Steel Market Update’s flat rolled market trends questionnaire, possibly reflecting the seasonal slowdown in sales activity. What makes the results collected on mills willingness to negotiate pricing especially interesting is the domestic steel mills began announcing […]
I asked trade attorney Lewis Leibowitz recently to look into the requests for reviews of the antidumping and countervailing duties on CORE (corrosion resistant steel) and cold rolled. The U.S. Department of Commerce published notices on July 3, 2017, asking any of the countries/companies affected if they wished to have a one-year review of the […]
As was mentioned earlier in tonight’s newsletter, our 2017 SMU Steel Summit Conference will be a sell-out this year and the question really is what day this week will we close registrations? I am both surprised and humbled by the response we have gotten to this year’s event. Our team works very hard to put […]
Trade actions are moving ahead in the Section 337 case against Chinese steel producers. Sanctions have been placed on two of seven Chinese respondents by Administrative Law Judge Dee Lord for failure to produce documentation necessary to investigate transshipment charges brought by U.S. Steel. On June 28, 2017, U.S. Steel filed a motion for sanctions […]
I was advised late on Friday afternoon that we should expect a Nucor price increase early next week. With scrap prices firming $10 to $30 per ton our expectation is for the increase to be $25-$30 per ton. Then the question will be will the industry support another increase after tepid (at best) support for […]
Even though the Trump administration has postponed a decision on Section 232, the possibility of trade action that will further restrict steel imports is still influencing the market, according to comments from service centers, manufacturers and trading companies gathered in last week’s Steel Market Update Flat Roll Market Trends questionnaire. Two-thirds of all steel buyers […]
NAFTA renegotiations are under way and automakers are concerned about changes to rules of origin for automobiles. Strengthening the rules could make U.S. auto and manufacturing sectors less competitive globally, warned speakers at a Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA) event on Wednesday. Representatives of American and international automotive producers charged that stronger rules of […]
Rumor vs. Fact – I was speaking with Tim Triplett (our Executive Editor who recently joined SMU after a 19 year stint at Metal Center News) and we were talking about the “rumor” of a potential price hike by Nucor. Tim raised the question, as members of the media, is it appropriate for us to […]
Flat rolled steel buyers are fairly optimistic about their chances for success in the current market, though the various metrics Steel Market Update uses to gauge future demand are sending mixed signals. One likely cause is the uncertainty injected into the market by the Trump administration’s now-delayed Section 232 investigation. According to the latest SMU […]
We have been incredibly busy this week as we work toward getting all of the pieces of the SMU Steel Summit Conference puzzle to fit together as seamlessly as possible. There are a number of firsts for this conference, but I am going to wait until the conference starts for many of them to be […]