Category: SMU

Sheet prices declined less than usual this week. Does that mean we’re nearing a bottom, or is it just a pause before the market moves lower yet again?

The drop in imports continued for the second straight month, in line with license applications and falling lower year on year (YoY).

We’ve been busier than usual lately covering two major events (in addition to our pricing and data services) – the potential sale of U.S. Steel and the United Auto Workers (UAW) union strike. Let’s review some possible developments in each. U.S. Steel Sale – Back in the Headlines We learned last week that Stelco had […]

Last week, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers gave a major speech challenging the views of anti-trade leaders, such as (but not limited to) Bob Lighthizer.

The United Auto Workers (UAW) union has more leverage than the Detroit Three automakers in the current strike that started Sept. 15, according to Jason Schenker, president of Prestige Economics.

The United Auto Workers (UAW) significantly escalated its strike against General Motors and Stellantis on Friday.

A big "thank you" to Wolfe Research and Timna Tanners for organizing a lunch in today in Chicago with a group of steel industry participants and investors.

US hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices fell further relative to imported product this week. Domestic hot band remains cheaper than offshore HRC as US tags continue to sink at a sharper rate than those overseas.

On Monday and Tuesday of this week, SMU polled steel buyers on a variety of subjects, including steel prices, demand levels, sheet prices abroad, inventory, the UAW strike, and what people are talking about in the market

North American auto assemblies saw its best total year to date in August, and its best mark in nearly five years, driven by a 32.8% jump in total assemblies vs. July’s output.

Ken Simonson, chief economist for The Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), will be the featured speaker on the next SMU Community Chat webinar on Wednesday, Oct. 4, at 11 a.m. ET. The live webinar is free. A recording will be available free to SMU members. You can register here. We’ll talk about the outlook […]

United Auto Workers (UAW) union members in Alabama at a parts supplier to Mercedes-Benz have gone on strike.

US light-vehicle (LV) sales rose to an unadjusted 1.33 million units in August, up 12.8% vs. year-ago levels, while domestic LV sales fell 4.5% month-on-month.

Ford's Canadian subsidiary and auto workers represented by Unifor - roughly the Canadian equivalent of the UAW - have reached a new, tentative labor agreement.

Sheet prices fell again this week, this time not on fears of a United Auto Workers (UAW) union strike but on the actual thing.

United Auto Workers (UAW) union president Shawn Fain has announced a new deadline of Friday, Sept. 22, at noon, at which point the union could expand its strike.

Flat Rolled = 54.1 Shipping Days of Supply Plate = 61.2 Shipping Days of Supply Flat Rolled US service center flat-rolled steel inventories eased back in August with stronger shipments. At the end of August, service centers carried 54.1 shipping days of supply, according to adjusted SMU data, down from 56.1 shipping days of supply […]

Steel Market Update’s Steel Demand Index remains in contraction territory despite marginal improvement, according to our latest survey data.

The United Auto Workers (UAW) strike that started Friday leaves the Detroit 3 automakers—and it’s union-represented workers—in uncharted territory.

The spread between hot-rolled coil (HRC) and galvanized sheet base prices widened throughout the summer as hot rolled prices declined faster than those of galvanized.

The spread between hot-rolled coil (HRC) and prime scrap prices continued to narrow this month, according to Steel Market Update’s most recent pricing data.

SMU's Current and Future Steel Buyers Sentiment Indices both ticked up this week before the United Auto Workers (UAW) union strike was declared, based on our most recent survey data.

he latest SMU Market Survey results are now available on our website to all Premium members.

The United Auto Workers (UAW) launched its “stand up” strike just after midnight on Friday, according to posts on the union’s Facebook page. “We are the union! The mighty, mighty union,” UAW members with “On Strike” signs chanted in a video posted to the site. The move came after union president Shawn Fain suggested that […]

SMU Managing Editor Michael Cowden shares his Final Thoughts for the week on what happens to steel if the United Auto Workers (UAW) launch a series of “stand up” strikes at midnight tonight against Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis?

The overall steel mill negotiation rate jumped 14 percentage points this week vs. the last market check, with plate's rate rising by eight percentage points, according to SMU's most recent survey data.

Steel mill lead times were basically flat again this week compared to our previous market check, with production times shrinking slightly for hot rolled and cold rolled, and extending for galvanized, Galvalume, and plate.

The United Auto Workers (UAW) union will strike specific plants across all “Big Three” automakers if new labor contracts are not reached by midnight on Thursday.

Sheet prices have fallen to their lowest point of the year - just below $700 per ton ($35 per cwt) when it comes to hot-rolled coil (HRC).

US apparent steel supply declined 2% in July to 8.28 million net tons compared to the previous month, according to data from the US Department of Commerce and the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).