Category: Market Segment

Plate market participants expect domestic producers to issue a $40-60 per short ton (st) price increase.

US-flagged iron ore shipments on the Great Lakes fell last year vs. 2024.

Baker Hughes' latest rig count report shows oil and gas drilling picked up in the US this week, but slowed in Canada. Oil drilling in both countries is down from last year, while gas drilling has picked up, mainly in the US.

November steel exports tumbled 15% from October to the lowest monthly export rate since July 2020.

Recent winter storms have impeded barge transportation along multiple Midwestern waterways, according to various transportation services. Likewise, U.S. Steel said it was facing challenging shipping conditions but does not expect customers to be impacted.

SMU’s latest steel buyers market survey results are now available on our website to all premium members. After logging in at steelmarketupdate.com, visit the pricing and analysis tab and look under the “survey results” section for “latest survey results.” Past survey results are also available under that selection. If you need help accessing the survey results, or if […]

Steel mill lead times marginally declined on sheet products this week but edged higher on plate, according to responses from SMU’s latest market survey. Overall, lead times remain one to two weeks longer than levels seen three months ago.

U.S. Steel plans to idle the No. 14 blast furnace at its Gary Works near Chicago for a reline for ~100 days from May to August.

ArcelorMittal’s North American operations posted lower sequential results in the fourth quarter. But with operations returning to normal in Mexico, the company expects to see a volume recovery in the first quarter.

Sheet market participants said conditions this week were more stable than in past weeks, but they remain cautiously optimistic overall.   

U.S. Steel plans to restart Battery #13 at its Clairton Coke Works on Feb. 5. Battery #13 was one of the batteries hot idled since a lethal explosion at Clairton on Aug. 11, 2025.

Domestic steel shipments rose month-on-month and on-year in December, according to the latest figures from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). At the same time, full-year 2025 shipments increased.

Steel imports remain weak in November and December according to recently released final US Commerce Department data. Many of the sheet and plate products we follow slipped to multi-year lows.

The US Department of Commerce has found that certain steel pipe rolled in Oman using Chinese hot-rolled coil is illegally circumventing anti-dumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVDs).

O’Neal Industries (ONI) has announced changes to its top leadership. The Birmingham, Ala.-based family-owned metals service center group said the following appointments are effective immediately.

The amount of raw steel produced by US mills eased last week according to the AISI. Production remains strong compared to the multi-month lows seen at the end of the year.

BlueScope’s new chief executive used her first public address to signal a faster, more aggressive phase for the steel company. She underscored the strength of its US operations and the rejection of a recent takeover proposal she said “materially undervalued” the business.

Nucor’s consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled coil increased to $970 per short ton, up $5/st from last week.

There is no evidence that unofficial talks are taking place to secure tariff reductions on Canadian aluminum or steel. One of the biggest challenges is simply understanding what the US actually wants from Canada.

Participants in the hot- and cold-rolled coil markets said winter storms in the East and Midwest may disrupt weekly order volumes and prices.  

A coalition of US steel industry CEOs has formally urged President Trump to maintain—and fully enforce—current Section 232 tariffs on steel and steel‑containing goods.

SMU interviews Worthington Steel CEO Geoff Gilmore about the recent Kloeckner & Co. buy.

SSAB Americas delivered higher shipments and a stronger operating result in the fourth quarter of 2025. The company saw firm demand in key US end markets and a solid finish to the year despite a planned maintenance outage.

Metalforming manufacturers anticipate strong near-term economic conditions that will give way to increasing orders, according to the Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report for January 2026. 

Nucor Chair and CEO Leon Topalian is bullish on the outlook for 2026. And noted that the Charlotte, NC-based steelmaker remains in the hunt for M&A opportunities.

What do SMU's latest survey results show about the current market take on tariffs and where HRC prices are going?

AZZ Inc. posted on its website that it had temporarily closed more than half a dozen locations in response to the extremely cold weather gripping much of the US.

Alton Steel Inc. (ASI), a special bar quality (SBQ) steel producer, said it will close operations later this week.

“The premise for the board’s rejection was insufficient value. Yet they provided shareholders with no reasonable, executable alternative strategy that would provide the same certainty of shareholder return,” SDI Co-founder, Chairman, and CEO Mark Millett said.

Nucor reported higher profits in the fourth quarter on-year, and expects sequential improvements across all segments in the current quarter.