Category: SMU

The amount of steel exiting the country in August reached the highest monthly rate recorded since August 2023.

Nucor’s top executive Leon Topalian has been elected vice chair of the World Steel Association (worldsteel) for the 2024-25 time period.

Flat rolled = 60.8 shipping days of supply Plate = 52.7 shipping days of supply Flat rolled Flat-rolled steel supply at US service centers declined in September, though still seasonally high. September’s report reflects lower demand, stable lead times, and restocking early in the third quarter at a perceived bottom in prices. At the end […]

Domestic raw steel mill production slightly recovered last week, according to the latest figures released from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).

The World Steel Association (worldsteel) has made significant downward revisions to its Short Range Outlook for global steel demand.

After holding its weekly spot price for hot-rolled (HR) coil steady for three weeks at $730 per short ton (st), Nucor lowered the price this week by $10/st.

Everybody has an opinion about politics these days. More importantly for our readers, though, every business has a bottom line. A popular question in our most recent steel buyers survey asked how uncertainty around the upcoming US presidential election could affect that line.

August steel imports totaled 2.38 million short tons (st) according to final data released this week by the US Commerce Departmen

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 […]

The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) this week named two new board members: Neil Tannyan of Hatch and Doug Dunworth of SMS Group.

SMU’s Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Indices moved in different directions this week. Our Current Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Index eased to a six-week low, while Future Buyers’ Sentiment ticked up to a four-week high. Both of our Indices continue to indicate optimism among steel buyers.

I’m trying to make sure this is not a TL;DR Final Thoughts. As a journalism school professor once told me, ‘No one but your mom reads more than 1,000 words.’ Also, as the old adage goes, a picture is worth a thousand as well. With that in mind, below are a couple of charts that I think go a long way toward explaining how prices and lead times have been relatively stable despite concerns about demand.

Steel mill lead times inched up this week for most sheet and plate products, according to buyers responding to our latest market survey.

Negotiation rates have consistently been in the 70-80% range for over two months, relatively strong in comparison to levels seen across the past year.

The building that was once the headquarters of AK Steel is again up for sale.

Nucor said it would keep plate prices unchanged in a letter to customers on Wednesday. The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker in addition said it was opening its November order book for plate. The company did not specify what its plate price was. It has officially kept prices flat since cutting them by $125 per short ton (st) on July 1.

It’s another week of big headlines for the world writ large – an expanding war in the Middle East, another potentially catastrophic hurricane – and not much going on in the world of steel prices. “Call me Stevie Wonder, I see nothing.” That’s how one service center executive described the current sheet market. There seems to be almost a competition among some of our Community Chat guests and contributors to outdo each other in flowery ways to say, “

Steel sheet and plate prices moved lower this week as efforts among some mills to hold the line on tags ran up against continued concerns about demand.

Richard Fruehauf, formerly of U.S. Steel, has been named chief venture officer of robotics and AI firm Carnegie Foundry.

Iron ore prices spiked as the Chinese market reopened after the country’s seven day holiday, but the rally started to lose steam on Tuesday afternoon.

Slowing growth in data center planning caused the Dodge Momentum Index (DMI) to pull back in September. The decline followed five months of growth after the index hit a two-year low in March.

Surprise, surprise. Forget Halloween, the trend this October is all around the unexpected. Known as the “October Surprise,” you never know what is in store for you in the month before a US presidential election. Still, if we pull back the dial back date-wise a little bit, a familiar theme has been added to the mix: kick the can.

US drilling activity remains near multi-year lows, while Canadian counts increased to one of the highest levels recorded in seven months.

Another day, another massive gap between the news and market sentiment. On the news side, we’ve got war in the Middle East. The devastation facing western North Carolina coming into tragic focus. And the outcome of the presidential election remains a coin toss, according to current polling.

SMU’s monthly review provides a summary of important steel market metrics for the previous month. This latest report includes data updated through Sept. 30.

Construction spending in the US declined for a third month in August but showed an increase year over year (y/y). The US Census Bureau estimated construction spending to be $2.131 trillion in August on a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR). While this was 0.1% below July’s revised spending rate, it was 4.1% higher than spending […]

The United Steelworkers (USW) union has named Kevon Stewart to be director of District 6, which represents members in Ontario and Atlantic Canada. The USW said that appointment was effective on Oct. 1. It also noted that Stewart became the first black district director in the union – not only in Canada but in the United States as well.

Earlier this week, SMU polled steel buyers on an array of topics, ranging from market prices, demand, and inventories to imports and evolving market events.

There are markets where the headlines and the prices are both crazy. This does not appear to be one of them, at least not yet.

Steel prices ticked higher this week for most of the sheet products SMU tracks, back up to highs last recorded in June and July. Meanwhile, plate prices edged lower following three weeks of stability.