Steps to contain the spread of COVID-19 have dealt a serious blow to construction, which is the largest market for steel. Construction will be the focus of this week’s SMU Community Chat. Two out of three construction executives responding to an April 20-23 survey by the Associated General Contractors of America reported that they are […]
Durable goods orders plummeted 14.4 percent in March to $213.2 billion, said the U.S. Census Bureau in its latest report. The decrease followed three consecutive months of increase and was the largest monthly decline since August 2014. Transportation equipment led the decrease in March falling 41 percent to $51.2 billion. Commercial aircraft and parts plunged […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Justin Hughes and Senior Cost Economist Ross Cunningham, from CRU’s Global Steel Trade Service The international oil markets have been under severe pressure since the outbreak of Covid-19 with the rapid destruction of crude oil and oil product demand. Despite attempts for coordinated supply-side action by major oil producing nations, including […]
Companies are being affected to varying degrees by the coronavirus depending on their market and geography, so it’s no surprise their opinions range widely on how long it will take business to return to pre-COVID levels. Some hope for activity to rebound as soon as this summer, while others fear it won’t be until next […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly taken a toll on American lives and the economy. The first case of the disease in the U.S. was reported 88 days ago on Jan. 22. As of April 21, there have been 784,326 reported infections and 42,094 deaths. The toll on the U.S. economy has been devastating. Stay-at-home orders […]
Steel Buyers Sentiment remained in pessimistic territory in mid-April as steel demand was stifled by the government restrictions on commerce to control the spread of COVID-19. Future Buyers Sentiment was notably more optimistic, however, which suggests service center and manufacturing executives anticipate better days ahead. Steel Market Update asked steel buyers how they view their […]
Last week, Steel Market Update conducted an analysis of the flat rolled and plate steel markets as we reached out to more than 500 individuals uniquely qualified to provide insights into these markets. What we found is an almost universal picture of a steel economy in a tailspin. Through our steel survey, SMU has seen […]
Last week, Steel Market Update conducted an analysis of the flat rolled and plate steel markets as we reached out to more than 500 individuals uniquely qualified to provide insights into these markets. What we found is an almost universal picture of a steel economy in a tailspin. Through our steel survey, SMU has seen […]
If not for the pandemic, SMU would be calling the service centers as being at a point of capitulation. Our expectation would be for the steel mills to announce price increases in the near future. If not for the pandemic. We have seen both manufacturing companies and service centers reporting spot prices out of the […]
Economic activity contracted “sharply and abruptly” last month, according to the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book report. The report, covering activity through April 6, showed leisure and hospitality industries bearing the brunt of the decline. “All Districts reported highly uncertain outlooks among business contacts, with most expecting conditions to worsen in the next several months,” said […]
Active U.S. and Canadian drill rigs continued to decline this past week, according to oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The active drill rigs count is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of oil country tubular goods demand. The number of active U.S. rigs fell by 73 to 529, with oil […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled and plate have continued to shorten despite the mills’ efforts so far to curtail production and match supply with demand. Lead times for steel delivery are a measure of demand at the mill level—the shorter the lead time, the less busy the mill. Average lead times for […]
It’s a buyer’s market with many buyers sitting on the sidelines waiting for federal and state officials to declare the coast is clear and open up the economy once again. Not surprisingly, steel mills are very willing to negotiate to secure orders in the current low-demand environment. More than nine out of 10 buyers responding […]
The Empire State Manufacturing Survey plunged to its lowest level ever, falling 57 points to a reading of -78.2, in April. “By way of comparison, the lowest level this indicator had reached prior to April was -34.3 during the Great Recession,” said the New York Federal Reserve. New York City has been the epicenter for […]
Using International Trade Commission (USITC) data, Steel Market Update has taken the import tonnage of cold rolled sheet and broken it down into coil and leveled, into four thickness ranges, and identifies how much was full hard, annealed and high strength. This update examines the total cold rolled sheet and strip imports into the U.S. […]
The U.S. dollar strengthened against 14 of the 16 steel and raw materials trading nation currencies in the last three months and also in the last month. There was a turnaround in the last seven days when the dollar weakened against 14 of the 16. In the last three months, the currencies of Brazil, Mexico, […]
Manufacturers and distributors up and down the supply chain have been disappointed to learn that their insurance coverage does not protect them from the coronavirus. “Pandemic outbreaks are uninsured because they are uninsurable,” said David A. Sampson, president and CEO of the American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA), the trade group for home, auto and […]
In a new trade outlook by the World Trade Organization, WTO Director Roberto Azevêdo called the global economic situation “ugly.” “The unavoidable declines in trade and output will have painful consequences for households and businesses, on top of the human suffering caused by the disease itself,” said Azevêdo. “The immediate goal is to bring the […]
Executives from service centers and manufacturing companies report widespread order cancellations as customers scale back or shut down to stem the spread of COVID-19. Companies anticipate their sales will be off anywhere from 25-80 percent in April, compared with the same month last year. When will business start to return to normal? The most hopeful […]
By CRU Senior Cost Analyst Ross Cunningham, from CRU’s Steel Monitor Covid-19 has spread across the world at alarming rates. As of March 28, the pandemic has reached 177 countries and shows little sign of letting up. When fighting a global health and economic crisis unlike anything ever seen before, there will be no winners—only […]
Steel Market Update’s monthly analysis of Key Market Indicators has done a good job of anticipating the ups and downs of the steel market in the past, but the economic data currently available seriously lags the impact of the coronavirus on the economy. Only 3 of 36 indicators in this month’s report have even begun […]
The employment situation in the U.S. is a disaster. The current economic situation is so extraordinarily dire that historical data and trend analysis is almost irrelevant except to illustrate the severity of the situation we are all experiencing. Net job creation in March was negative 701,000 and January was revised down by 59,000, according to […]
We’re all saturated with news of the employment disaster caused by the coronavirus, but to look at the long-term picture graphically is still shocking. Figure 1 shows the three-month moving average (3MMA) of the number of jobs created or lost through April since 2005 as the brown bars and the total number employed as the […]
The U.S. lost a net 701,000 jobs in March as the economy struggled with the coronavirus, and the labor situation is expected to be much worse in April. The brunt of March’s employment decline was felt by service industries. In the coming months, manufacturing and construction jobs will suffer more as well. Table 1 breaks […]
More than 20.5 million Americans lost their jobs in April, including 18.1 million in service industries and 2.4 million in goods-producing industries such as manufacturing and construction, according to data just released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The latest job losses came on top of 870,000 lost in March, following a gain of 230,000 […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled and plate are shortening as steps to control the coronavirus decimate demand. Lead times for steel delivery are a measure of demand at the mill level—the shorter the lead time, the less busy the mill. Average lead times for most products have shortened by roughly half a […]
Price negotiations between steel mills and steel buyers are wide open, not surprisingly, as companies scramble to win orders in a market disrupted by the coronavirus. More than nine out of 10 buyers responding to Steel Market Update’s questionnaire this week said the mills are now talking price on all types of products. In the […]
Steel buyers surveyed by Steel Market Update this week report that demand is plunging and they expect steel prices to continue declining right along with it for at least the next 30 days. The majority believe that efforts by the mills to cut production and match supply with demand will not be enough to establish […]
The global impact of Covid-19 has been profound. Lockdowns of countries and regions are now the norm. Uncertainty about the ultimate economic cost of this health crisis has fuelled financial market volatility and prompted unprecedented government support. CRU Chief Economist Jumana Saleheen joins Doug Hilderhoff, principal analyst for aluminium, and Josh Spoores, principal analyst for […]
Steel Buyers Sentiment—how steel executives view their prospects for success—has continued to deteriorate as the market struggles with the coronavirus restrictions. Current sentiment dipped into pessimistic territory to a reading of -8 this week, the lowest level since November 2010. It is also the first time we have entered the pessimistic portion of our index […]