Tata Steel is expected to announce on Friday that it is halting the sales process for its UK assets, according to a report by the BBC. Shortly after the United Kingdom announced withdrawal from the European Union, four of the shortlisted bidders pulled out of the process citing uncertainty about the continuing viability of the […]
ArcelorMittal has made a joint bid with Marcegaglia SpA to purchase Italian steel plant Ilva. In an announcement on June 30, the consortium outlined their plans to bring the troubled mill up to environmental standards and increase production. If successful in it its bid, ArcelorMittal plans to return the three blast furnaces at the plant […]
A strong finish to the 2016 fiscal year drove annual earnings per share to a record $2.22 for Worthington Industries. Earnings for fourth quarter, ending May 31, 2016, were were $58.8 million with sales of $714.7 million. Net earnings were more than double Q4 2015 earnings of $28.9 million. “While we expect some headwinds to […]
It appears that Essar Global has been eliminated from the bidders vying for the assets of US Steel Canada. The Hamilton Spectator is reporting that the USSC board of directors has rejected a bid from Essar Global because of concerns that the company lacks the financial resources to complete a purchase. Essar was rejected as […]
Baosteel and Wuhan Iron and Steel Group (Wisco) are contemplating a merger that would unseat Hebei Iron and Steel Group as China’s largest domestic producer and rival European steelmaker ArcelorMittal. A merger of China’s second largest steelmaker Baosteel with fifth ranked Wisco would create a combined output of approximately 70 million tonnes. The merger would […]
There have been a number of articles written recently regarding the move by the Chinese government to remove some of the tax incentives in the form of rebates to the Chinese steel producers who export certain steel products. Any move to remove export tax rebates on steel is seen as a positive by the rest […]
Essar Steel Algoma filed a formal motion for approval of the sale of the company to KPS Capital. The asset purchase agreement will sell the assets of Algoma for a combination of cash sufficient to pay the outstanding liabilities under the DIP facility, a credit bid of the term loan debt, and assumption of certain […]
USW members overwhelmingly ratified a new contract with ArcelorMittal today (June 23). The new agreement covers nearly 14,000 union-represented hourly production, maintenance, and technical workers at the company’s 15 locations through Sept. 1, 2018. “We have settled our differences with management at the table, so together now we can focus on addressing the industry’s real […]
Once a month Steel Market Update participates in a steel conference call hosted by HARDI. The wholesalers associated with HARDI supply galvanized steel and other products to the mechanical contractors involved in residential, multi-family, light commercial and commercial construction around the country. The purpose of the call is to better understand the galvanized steel markets […]
An explosion and fire at US Steel Edgar Thomson resulted in the evacuation of the steel plant in Braddock, Pennsylvania last night. Firefighting crews from Forest Hills and Braddock responded. No injuries were reported. US Steel released the following statement: “At approximately 7:30 p.m. last evening, an incident occurred in the steelmaking area of the […]
USW Local 1005 says it is prepared to fight for what belongs to the active workers and 20,000 pensioners at US Steel Canada. The Canadian USW Local representing Hamilton Works is angry about media reports “that there are bidders interested in purchasing Stelco and Algoma and they will not assume ‘legacy obligations’ referring to pension […]
Based on Steel Market Update (SMU) analysis of the recently released MSCI service center inventory and shipment data, total service center carbon steel shipments decreased by 41,100 tons in May to 3.050 million tons. The number of shipping days was he same at 21. On a tons per day (t/d) basis shipments decreased from 147,200 […]
Essar Steel Algoma announced today (June 17) that it has entered into an asset purchase agreement with KPS Capital Partners, LP. The sale is subject to approval by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. KPS, a leading private equity firm in the manufacturing sector, has a history of transforming challenged businesses into healthy, independent companies. […]
Speculation continues to grow that KPS Capital, the suitor for Essar Steel Algoma, will also buy US Steel Canada and merge the two companies. Sources for the Globe and Mail and Hamilton Spectator say that KPS is one of the two remaining bidders for the former Stelco operations in Hamilton and Nanticoke. According to anonymous […]
Steel service centers based in the United States shipped and received fewer tons of steel products during the month of May, according to data just released by the Metal Service Center Institute (MSCI). Shipments of all steel products totaled 3,204,800 net tons at a daily shipment rate of 152,600 tons. Last month the daily rate […]
Two bidders continue to vie for purchase of the Hamilton and Nanticoke steel plants in Canada. According to the Hamilton Spectator, sources close to the sale confirm that Essar Group of India and KPS Capital Partners LP of New York are the final contenders for US Steel Canada. KPS is also interested in gaining Essar […]
Canadian shipments for all steel products in the month of May were 388,600 net tons, an increase of 4.2 percent from the month before but a decrease of 2.1 percent from May 2015. Inventories at the end of the month stood at 1,150,300 tons, down 9.4 percent from last month and down 26.1 percent from […]
Nucor Corporation says flat rolled-trade cases are having a positive impact on reducing steel imports. The expectation is that final determinations in all three flat rolled cases will result in higher duties than currently being collected from the preliminary decisions. Second quarter results are expected to be significantly improved from first quarter due to higher […]
An attempt by US Steel to prevent US Steel Canada from continuing to use processes the parent company developed for high strength steels, has been thwarted by the Ontario Superior Court. US Steel claims it owns the intellectual property used by USSC, including the processes used to produce various grades of advanced high strength steel. […]
ArcelorMittal is set to expand its portfolio of automotive steels by launching two new products in 2017, Usibor®2000 and Ductibor®1000. According to a spokesperson at ArcelorMittal , Usibor® 2000, which has been under development for some time, is a new Aluminum-Silicon coated high strength steel that will be even stronger than its predecessor Usibor® 1500. […]
Nucor Corp. and JFE Holdings of Japan will enter a joint venture to build and operate a steel processing plant in central Mexico to supply the country’s automotive market. The 50-50 venture will cost $270 million to construct and have a capacity of 400,000 tons per year of galvanized sheet steel. The substrate for processing […]
The U.S. Court of Appeals has upheld a lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit brought by Nucor Corp against Big River Steel. The suit charged that the Big River Steel permit air permit was invalid and the continued construction of the mill violated the Clean Air Act. The district court dismissed the lawsuit for “lack […]
A new wrinkle has developed in the dispute between US Steel Canada and its former parent US Steel. US Steel is claiming ownership of USSC’s intellectual property and says the Canadian company cannot include it in the sale of its facilities. USSC’s chief restructuring officer, Bill Aziz, said that without a clear title to the […]
Recent reports on India’s steel sector are providing mixed signals on the industry’s health. The nation’s steel industry has suffered two years of low prices and subdued demand but rising GDP and the onset of monsoons after a severe drought may stimulate new orders. “Indian steel demand rose 4.5 per cent in the financial year […]
The new labor agreement between the United Steelworkers and ArcelorMittal USA has yet to be voted on but highlights of the contract reveal that the parties agreed to the idling of certain finishing lines at the North American operations. According to the union contract summary, the lines include the 84-inch Hot Strip Mill at Indiana […]
United Steelworkers are continuing to fight for the release of the secret deal between the Canadian government and US Steel. NDP MP Scott Duvall, on Thursday, called on the House of Commons on Thursday to release the terms of the agreement. United Steelworkers’ Ontario/Atlantic Director Marty Warren said Duvall’s demand must be acted on if […]
Tata Steel’s British steelmaking division is up for sale but it is now looking like Tata may keep the UK business. Last week it was reported that Tata was reviewing operations at the UK facilities and assessing offers of financial support from the government. The Daily Mail reports “sweeteners” offered by the Prime Minister include […]
ArcelorMittal USA and Cliffs Natural Resources have entered into a new long-term iron ore supply agreement that will run through 2026. The new agreement replaces two existing agreements that expire Dec. 2016 and Jan. 2017 and fills the entirety of ArcelorMittal’s pellet purchase requirements from the previous contracts. Cliffs Natural Resources will supply 7 to […]
The contract for USW Local 2251, the biggest union representing 2,207 steelworkers at Essar Steel Algoma, will expire on July 31, 2016. President of Local 2251, Mike Da Prat, says it is not a foregone conclusion that workers will agree to continue working under the expired contract. The second largest union, Local 2724, representing 457 […]
Earlier today the HARDI wholesalers conducted their May galvanized steel conference call. The wholesalers on the call service the mechanical contractors involved in the residential and commercial construction markets supplying galvanized sheet and coil and other products used in the heating and air-conditioning markets. Needless to say, the call was well attended in response to […]