Demand for design services from architecture firms in the U.S. continued to be robust in May, said the American Institute of Architects. AIA’s Architecture Billings Index rose to 58.5 from 57.9 in April for one of the highest scores in the ABI’s 25-year history. The ABI has expanded every month since January. The index for […]
Producer prices have not only recovered from the COVID-19-driven fallout, but have now overtaken pre-pandemic levels. Since the repeated decreases from February through April of 2020, the composite Producer Price Index (PPI) of all commodities from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has seen consistent month-on-month increases. May’s index registered a 3.2% increase versus the […]
The next three months will be challenging, said metalforming companies in the June 2021 Precision Metalforming Business Conditions Report. Only 36% of companies expect an improvement in economic activity during the period, down from 41% in May, while 12% anticipate a decline in activity, up from 10% in the previous month. The percentage of respondents […]
By Jeremy Flack, Flack Global Metals (Editor’s note: Jeremy Flack, the CEO of Flack Global Metals, will be among speakers in the Steel Futures Showcase during the Pre-Summit Workshop on Monday, Aug. 23, in advance of Steel Market Update’s Steel Summit in Atlanta.) One of the famous quotes from the 1992 movie “Glengarry Glen Ross” […]
The number of active oil and gas drill rigs increased this past week for both the United States and Canada, according to data released by oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The rig count is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of oil country tubular goods demand. The number of active […]
By CRU Prices Analyst Estelle Tran U.S. sheet prices are still trending higher, which has supported further gains in raw materials, slabs and imported steel. Even though CRU HR coil prices have increased 7.4% m/m to $1,655 /s.ton on June 16, market contacts still report a lack of workable offers, especially given lead times into […]
Mill shipments of steel products declined by 2.0% in April compared with the month prior, while apparent supply increased by 2.8% during the same period. April’s totals were a letdown from the strong performance in March, which saw shipments of steel products leap by 18.3% and apparent supply accelerate by 18.1%. This analysis is based […]
The spread between foreign and domestic steel prices has changed direction again since our last update, according to our latest foreign versus domestic hot rolled steel price comparison. The price differentials (after taking freight costs, trader margins and tariffs into consideration) between domestic HRC and foreign imports had surged from February to March of this year, reaching record […]
Manufacturing growth in New York State slowed a bit in June, according to the data collected in the Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The general business index fell seven points to 17.4. Indices for new orders and shipments fell by double digits from May, sliding 12.6 points and 16.5 points, respectively. Unfilled orders were slightly higher. […]
We are all concerned about the economy. Is inflation going to return to the devastating levels seen in the late 1970s and early 1980s (for those of you who were not around at the time, we saw interest rates rise to the high teens/low 20s)? When will demand ease and what are the implications for […]
SMU caught up with Ternium CEO Máximo Vedoya about the Latin American steelmaker’s plans for its new, $1.1-billion hot strip mill in in Pesquería, just outside of Monterrey, Mexico. The new mill – also known as #4 Pesqueria – sports capacity of 4.4 million tons per year. It rolled its first coils in May and Vedoya […]
By CRU Principal Economist Alex Tuckett and Chief Economist Jumana Saleheen In this mid-year update to our global economic outlook, we look back at our expectations at the beginning of the year, and those of our surveyed clients, and compare them with actual outcomes over the past six months. Overall, the global economy is in vastly better shape […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor Sheet prices in northern Europe, like in other areas of the world, have begun to decline – although prices in the USA have yet to follow this trend. Still, it appears that this upward trend in the U.S. market is nearing an end. […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Richard Lu, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor In September 2020, President Xi Jinping formally announced that China will aim to achieve a peak in carbon emissions before 2030, followed by carbon neutrality before 2060. As part of the decarbonization efforts, the Chinese government at the start of the year announced […]
U.S. steel and metals trade associations warned Congressional leaders that the condition of the nation’s infrastructure is “dire.” They urged legislators to support the “historic” and metal-intensive infrastructure bill proposed by the Biden administration. The trade groups—which claim to represent more than 74,000 domestic facilities—pointed out that an American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) 2021 report card gave U.S. […]
Crowe LLP, a public accounting, consulting and technology firm, announced two new executive appointments of particular interest to those in the steel and manufacturing industries. Scott L. Spencer, CPA, has been named managing partner of the manufacturing and distribution services group at Crowe LLP. In this role, Spencer will oversee the delivery of the firm’s […]
U.S. steel product shipments fell by 2.4% in April following an increase of 15.6% in the month prior. The decline, although disappointing, is not surprising because steel product shipments have been irregular from month to month since bottoming out in May 2020. The lack of consistency has been attributed to seasonal factors at times but […]
We are approaching 550 registered attendees for this year’s SMU Steel Summit Conference. Activity has been high and we are confident we will reach our 800+ registered attendee goal. Just last week we received registrations from the following companies: Niagara LaSalle Steel, JN Linrose Manufacturing, Atlantic Logistics LLC, Steel Dynamics Inc*., Alliance Steel LLC*, Rock […]
We are approaching 550 registered attendees for this year’s SMU Steel Summit Conference. Activity has been high and we are confident we will reach our 800+ registered attendee goal. Just last week we received registrations from the following companies: Niagara LaSalle Steel, JN Linrose Manufacturing, Atlantic Logistics LLC, Steel Dynamics Inc*., Alliance Steel LLC*, Rock […]
Editor’s note: SMU contributor Bryan Tice is a partner at Metal Edge Partners, a firm engaged in Risk Management and Strategic Advisory. In this role, he and the firm design and execute risk management strategies for clients along with providing process and analytical support. Before joining Metal Edge Partners, Bryan held a variety of commercial […]
United Steelworkers at ArcelorMittal Mines and Infrastructure Canada have ended their strike and ratified a new four-year labor contract with the company. “We are happy to turn the page on this conflict. The past few weeks have been a time to pause and start anew. We look forward to welcoming back our employees, and I […]
The U.S. economy recovered from the disappointing showing in April by adding 559,000 new jobs in May, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported. Although fewer workers were added to the payroll than the 700,000-plus forecasted by economists, the May jobs report was in line with February and March totals. The gains underscore the positive impact of steady […]
The U.S. labor market gained some ground in May following a disappointing performance the month prior. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that employers added 559,000 workers to their payrolls in May, a vast improvement from the measly 266,000 new jobs added in April – but still behind the 770,000 new hires in […]
ArcelorMittal Mines and Infrastructure Canada have reached tentative agreement with the United Steelworkers on a new labor contract following government-mediated negotiations. If ratified, the four-year collective labor agreement will cover 2,500 members in five union locals working at ArcelorMittal mining operations in northern Quebec. Workers launched a strike on May 10 after voting to reject a […]
The number of active oil and gas drill rigs decreased this past week for the United States, while the Canadian rig count jumped 24%, according to data released by oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The rig count is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of oil country tubular goods demand. […]
Canadian steel producer Stelco is getting into the electric vehicle battery recycling business. The company announced it will enter into a joint venture with Primobious to build a facility in North America that will recover and recycle materials from EV batteries. Primobious is a 50-50 joint venture of Neometals Ltd and SMS Group, formed to […]
Foreign steel imports from two of the three regions tracked by Steel Market Update are losing their price advantage over domestic steel, according to our latest foreign versus domestic hot rolled steel price comparison. The price differentials between domestic HRC compared to foreign imports had surged through February and March to reach record highs in […]
U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 6.4% in the first quarter of 2021 on an annualized basis, according to the second estimate from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). The second estimate saw no change in overall GDP compared to the advance estimate; however, upward revisions to consumer spending and nonresidential fixed investment were […]
The U.S. economy expanded at a moderate pace from early April to late May as vaccine rates increased and social activity began to normalize, said the Federal Reserve in its latest Beige Book report. Consumers spent more dollars on leisure travel and restaurants, giving a boost to the tourism industry that was among the hardest […]
ArcelorMittal Mexico plans to start up its new hot strip mill in Lázaro Cárdenas in Mexico’s Michoacán state in the fourth quarter of this year, a company spokeswoman said. The hot strip mill cost $1 billion and is expected to have annual capacity of 2.75 million tons per year (tpy), according to an ArcelorMittal press […]