The World Trade Organization is down to one appellate judge due to the efforts of the U.S. to undermine the organization. The effectiveness, and continued viability, of the WTO is now under question, say trade experts. The Trump administration has blocked all appointments to the seven member Appellate Body that rules on trade disputes among […]
Environmental damage and health issues have been a recurring theme in coverage of U.S. steel mills in the past few years. The issues, whether stemming from aging equipment or unanticipated accidents, are costing steel companies millions in repairs, penalties and lost production. U.S. Steel agreed on Dec. 4 to an $8.5 million tentative settlement in […]
Nucor’s Board of Directors has elected Leon J. Topalian as a director and John H. Walker to serve as Non-Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors, both effective Jan. 1, 2020. Topalian is the President and Chief Operating Officer of Nucor and will become the Chief Executive Officer of Nucor on Jan. 1, 2020. Walker, […]
Nucor announced the acquisition of another downstream company, TrueCore, a manufacturer of insulated metal panels for the cold storage market. “This acquisition fits well with our strategy to profitably grow our value-added product portfolio and provides great synergies with Nucor Buildings Group. As the market leader in metal buildings, we currently utilize a high volume […]
Changes may be coming for two joint ventures held by Brazilian mining giant Vale, including California Steel Industries. Vale is looking to trim costs as it continues to make reparations stemming from the Brumadinho tailings dam collapse that took 270 lives and caused major environmental damage to the region. At Vale Day on Dec. 2 […]
U.S. Steel is planning a 48-day outage for its #4 blast furnace at Gary Works that will begin early in the second quarter of 2020. Maintenance will include shotcrete and skip incline improvements. The seven-week outage will affect an estimated 200,000 tons of raw steel production. The idled BF #8 has been restarted to provide production […]
Nucor is expecting its earnings to decrease in the fourth quarter, according to just released guidance estimates. Earnings are expected in the range of $0.25 to $0.30 per diluted share, down from third-quarter earnings of $0.90 per share. Nucor’s steel mills segment will be impacted in the fourth quarter by lower steel prices that occurred […]
The Nucor Plate Mill Group informed customers today, Dec. 10, that it has increased transaction prices on all new orders for carbon, alloy and heat-treated plate by a minimum of $50 per ton, effective immediately. Nucor’s move follows a similar announcement by SSAB Americas on Friday. Sources tell SMU that ArcelorMittal has also followed suit, […]
The United States, Mexico and Canada have finally reached consensus on a new North American trade agreement. In an announcement on Tuesday, the office of U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said the USMCA “will support mutually beneficial trade leading to freer markets, fairer trade, and robust economic growth in North America.” Lighthizer and Canadian Deputy […]
Editor’s note: Steel is the largest producer of global industrial CO2 emissions. So, as stemming climate change takes on ever greater urgency, steelmakers are challenged to find production methods that emit fewer greenhouse gases. New technologies in development range from improving process efficiency to carbon capture to using hydrogen instead of coal as fuel. Following […]
Another shipping season on the Great Lakes is drawing to a close. Lake carriers are busy moving coal and ore to steel mills in the region to build stocks for the winter before heavy ice overtakes the lakes. The Soo Locks and St. Lawrence Seaway are scheduled to close for the season on Jan. 15. […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: I have received questions from several people about the ins and outs of product exclusions. I thought I’d give a brief summary of the subject and the opportunities and the problems that may arise. Section 301 (China) Product […]
By CRU Chief Economist Jumana Saleheen, from CRU’s Global Steel Trade Service This piece sets out insights gained from a visit to CRUs Beijing office. The trade war has been an unexpected headwind to China’s economy and there is a real concern about the risks of a sharper than desirable growth slowdown. In response the government […]
Samuel Associated Tube Group announced it will invest $29 million to build a new manufacturing facility in Jefferson County, Ala. Samuel Associated Tube, a division of Canada’s Samuel, Son & Co., is a manufacturer of small-diameter, electric-resistance-welded and fabricated carbon tubing. The new warehouse will total 284,000 square feet and is expected to be operational […]
Maintenance and a flooding incident have forced U.S. Steel to juggle producton on the furnaces at its Gary Works mill. Two of the three furnaces that had to be taken offline when a water pipe burst Nov. 27 are now back in operation. Blast furnaces #14 and #6 are now fully operational and #4 is […]
Editor’s note: President Trump’s surprise decision to impose 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Argentina and Brazil stunned the industry and leaves many questions unanswered. Paul Nathanson, executive director of the Coalition of American Metal Manufacturers and Users (CAMMU), addressed the issue in the following op-ed: President Trump announced via tweet on Monday that […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Ryan Smith and Senior Consultant Sarah Macnaughton, from CRU’s Crude Steel Market Outlook Climate change is moving up the political agenda and putting increasing pressure on heavy industry to reduce their CO2 emissions. As the largest producer of global industrial CO2 emissions, the steel sector has a clear role to play in meeting […]
SPS Companies and State Steel Supply Co., distributors and fabricators of steel products, will acquire the parts fabrication assets of laser process fabricator Kooima Co., located in Rock Valley, Iowa. “This new association with SPS and State will allow Kooima to continue our growth, with a primary mission of continuing to serve our customers’ needs […]
Cleveland-Cliffs and AK Steel Holdings surprised the market this morning, announcing the merger of their two companies. Under a definitive merger agreement, Cleveland-Cliffs will acquire all the issued and outstanding stock of AK Steel at $3.35 per share or $1.1 billion. Cliffs Chairman and CEO Lourenco Goncalves will lead the expanded organization and AK Steel […]
Service has been restored to the largest of the blast furnaces, and a second furnace will be back online shortly, following a water pipe break Nov. 27 that forced U.S. Steel to shut down all three operating furnaces at its Gary Works mill. In an update on Monday, a spokesperson said the third furnace is […]
Early reviews of Cleveland-Cliffs’ decision to acquire AK Steel show mixed opinions among the market observers polled by Steel Market Update. On the surface, the marriage of the producer of value-added iron ore with the long-time steelmaker, its largest customer, seems a natural fit. But merging the two, very different companies may not prove so […]
President Trump stunned the market with an early-morning tweet Monday calling for new Section 232 tariffs on steel imports from Brazil and Argentina, which he accused of currency manipulation. No word yet on whether the White House will make the tariffs official, or even if they would be legal. But the prospect of higher priced […]
This morning President Trump tweeted that due to the decline in the Brazilian and Argentinian currencies, he intends to place 25 percent tariffs on steel and a 10 percent tariff on aluminum from both countries. His tweet has created a great deal of confusion in the U.S. steel markets. Steel Market Update is attempting to […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Josh Spoores, from the CRU Steel Monitor President Trump sent three tweets this morning that said, effective immediately, he would restore the steel and aluminum tariffs on Brazil and Argentina because the countries “have been presiding over a massive devaluation of their currencies, which is not good for our farmers.” No […]
The following article is written by John Packard, President & CEO, Steel Market Update On Sunday, SMU published in my Final Thoughts the following: “There has also been discussion about U.S. Steel in the marketplace as to whether the mill has decided to concentrate on auto, appliance, energy and electrical markets and perhaps move away […]
Stelco’s strategy to get into the merchant pig iron (MPI) market is getting high marks from the experts. As one of the Canadian steelmaker’s strategic growth initiatives, it plans to construct a new pig iron making facility at its Lake Erie Works to coincide with a blast furnace reline scheduled for Q2 2020. Stelco claims […]
Editor’s note: The following commentary in support of the Trump administration steel tariffs was contributed by Barry Zekelman, chairman and CEO of Zekelman Industries, the largest steel pipe and tube manufacturer in North America. We often hear that the Trump administration’s steel tariffs are hurting the U.S. economy. News commentators certainly think so. They talk […]
A tentative deal between the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference and Canadian National Railway will bring an end to a weeklong strike by 3,200 conductors and railyard workers. CN said workers will return to work beginning on Tuesday and normal operations should resume by Wednesday morning. Details of the agreement will not be available until members have […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: As the Section 232 tariffs continue, their market effects continue to pile up. The tariffs cause effects on investment and employment, both for steel producers and their customers. Tariffs reduce imports of steel, for example, but they increase […]
A strike by 3,200 Teamster union employees at Canadian National Railway is causing disruption in both Canada and the U.S. Now in its sixth day, with no end in sight, a shortage of propane is imminent for Ontario and Quebec as well as delays to shipping across the manufacturing industry. CN transports more than CAD […]