After working in the steel industry for nearly six years, I’m comfortable with my knowledge about flat-rolled products. I do enjoy talking about the market and furthering my steel education any chance I get. Back in October 2022, I attended the Steel 101 training in Corpus Christi, Texas. It was nice to chat with metallurgists […]
Teck Resources is now producing zinc with a low-carbon footprint. A new report independently reviewed by PricewaterhouseCoopers shows the extremely low-carbon footprint of refined zinc from Teck’s Trail Operations in British Columbia, Canada. The report shows that Trail Operations’ zinc generates far less CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent) per ton than the global average: 0.93 metric […]
The appeal for imports of hot-rolled coil (HRC) remains strong even as US price gains have slowed, according to SMU’s latest foreign vs. domestic price analysis. And while we haven’t seen an official mill pricing notice in nearly three weeks, domestic tags continue to inch higher towards the targeted base price of $1,200 per ton […]
Nucor’s new plate mill in Brandenburg, Ky., reached another milestone earlier this month with the casting of its first slab on its new continuous caster. The SMS group, supplier of the single-strand caster, announced the milestone was reached on March 8. The caster, one of the largest in the world with an annual production capacity […]
The United Auto Workers (UAW) union has sworn in Shawn Fain as its new president. This completes the union’s first-ever direct election of top leadership, UAW said in a statement on March 26. Fain defeated former UAW president Ray Curry. Fain on Monday delivered a message to the delegates on day one of the 2023 UAW Special Bargaining Convention. […]
Raw steel production by US mills slipped 0.4% last week from the week prior, according to data released by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) on Monday, March 27. Domestic production stood at 1,679,000 net tons in the week ended March 25 vs. 1,686,000 net tons the previous week. It was off 1.8% from 1,710,000 net tons […]
The LME aluminum three-month price steadied this week despite a whirlwind of upsetting news, finding its footing near $2,300 per metric ton. That’s below the $2,500-per-ton mark we saw as 2023 opened on a more optimistic tone. The recent news from across the geopolitical and macroeconomic scene has dampened demand sentiment in the near term. […]
Rig counts dropped in Canada but increased again in the US this week, according to data from oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The total US rig count was 758 for the week ended March 24, up four rigs from the week prior. The number of active oil rigs in the US increased to 593 from the prior week’s […]
The failure of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and acquisition of Credit Suisse are unlikely to cause severe financial disturbance on the scale of the global financial crisis (GFC). However, these events further amplify the probability of recession in the US and Europe, and they have certainly got the market talking about whether a new GFC […]
Commercial Metals Co.’s (CMC’s) net earnings slipped 53% in its fiscal 2023 second quarter compared with the same period a year earlier on weather issues and a planned outage. “CMC achieved strong financial results during the second quarter while managing a number of challenges, including weather-related shipment disruptions in our core geographies, costs associated with […]
I referred to the fast-paced mill price increase announcements for HR back on March 9. The HR spot index had just moved up over $100 per short ton (ST) from the prior week to set the monthly contract price at $1,017/ST. HR spot indexes have continued to move higher albeit at a slower pace. Hot Rolled […]
Voestalpine AG is set to commission the construction of two electric-arc furnaces (EAFs) in Austria. The Linz, Austria-based company said the approval stage has been reached allowing for the investment of around €1.5 billion ($1.62 bilion) to construct one EAF in Linz and another in Donawitz. As part of its “greentec steel” plan, the plant and […]
It’s not always easy to be a market disruptor, but when done right, it’s worth it. Reibus International is one of those companies hoping to bring change, increased efficiencies, and new ways of doing business to an older industry steeped in tradition. SMU sat down this week with John Armstrong, the founder and CEO of […]
US light-vehicle (LV) sales declined to an unadjusted 1.14 million units in February, the US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reported. Despite the month-on-month (MoM) decline, February’s total was still 8.7% higher year-on-year (YoY), and the seventh consecutive month to see a YoY increase in sales. On an annualized basis, LV sales were down 6.2% MoM in […]
Worthington Industries reported lower net earnings in its fiscal 3Q ended Feb. 28 vs. the same period a year earlier on lower steel prices. The Columbus, Ohio-based service center and processor posted 3Q 2023 net earnings of $46.3 million, down 18% from $56.3 million a year earlier on net sales that fell 20% to $1.1 billion. […]
Imported sheet and plate products’ arrival at US ports rose in January, leading their share of the US markets to recover, while domestic shipments varied during the month. That’s according to a Steel Market Update’s analysis of import data from the US Commerce Department and domestic shipment figures from the American Iron and Steel Institute […]
Citing rising raw material costs and strong demand, Nucor Tubular Products has announced its fourth price increase so far this year. The tubular producer said in a March 17 letter to customers that new orders for hollow structural sections (HSS), pipe, mechanical, and piling products will increase by $150 per ton, effective immediately. Earlier, on […]
The Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA) announced that TimkenSteel has joined the Washington, D.C.-based steel association. Additionally, SMA said Mike Williams, president and CEO of TimkenSteel, has joined SMA’s board of directors. “We look forward to partnering with our fellow SMA member companies to pursue smart policy on trade and regulation while strengthening the American steel […]
Manufacturing business activity continues to decline in the state of New York, according to the latest Empire State Manufacturing Survey taken between March 2–9. The New York Fed’s Empire state headline general business conditions index—a gauge of manufacturing activity in the state—declined by 19 points to -24.6, with 45% of respondents reporting worsening business conditions […]
The CRU metallics price indicator (CRUmpi) for March increased by 7.4% month-on-month to 357.7, the highest level since last June. The main developments have been in Turkey, where the tragic earthquake initially had a negative effect on scrap buying from the largest scrap importing country, though in the second half of February this quickly turned […]
The US Court of Appeals for The Federal Circuit has upheld Section 232 duties on steel tube and pipe from Turkey’s Borusan Mannesmann and its American subsidiary Borusan Mannesmann Pipe US. In a March 15 ruling the court affirmed an earlier opinion by the US Court of International Trade. Borusan had appealed the original decision, […]
Alro Steel has marked 75 years in business. Al Glick started Alro Steel with his brother Robert with one location in Jackson, Mich., in 1948. Now with more than 3,000 workers, the company has expanded to over 75 locations in 15 states. “We strive to be America’s premier metals, industrial supplies, and plastics service center,” the […]
Editor’s note: SMU Contributor David Feldstein is president of Rock Trading Advisors. Rock provides customers attached to the steel industry with commodity price risk management services and market intelligence. RTA is registered with the National Futures Association as a Commodity Trade Advisor. David has over 20 years of professional trading experience and has been active […]
Imports of hot-rolled coil (HRC) are becoming more attractive as US mills continue to drive domestic prices higher. The price advantage domestic HRC had enjoyed over offshore hot band as recently as five weeks ago swung negative, mirroring dynamics seen more than a year ago, according to Steel Market Update’s latest foreign vs. domestic price […]
What’s perhaps most shocking about Cleveland-Cliffs starting the week up $100 per ton ($5 per cwt) on sheet and targeting $1,200 per ton for hot-rolled coil (HRC) is that many of you didn’t find it shocking. In early February, we got used to prices going up by $50 per ton from one week to the […]
US heating and cooling equipment shipments were down in January, according to recently released data from the Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). Total shipments in January were 1.65 million units, compared to 1.68 in December, and down 9% compared to the same time last year. The highest shipment levels of 2022 were recorded […]
The steel industry in the US, and across much of the developed world, finds itself between two greens. On the one hand is the constant innovation towards sustainable, decarbonized “green” steel. And, on the other, is a more traditional green, the bottom line: money. The hope is to keep the two aligned, increasing profits while […]
How many different ways can we write about pricing increases? I had to look at my thesaurus at one point in an attempt to diversify my choice of words. There are plenty of charts and data that reflect how dynamically pricing has changed over the last month. A good explanation is key to making it digestible to […]
Editor’s note: Steel Market Update is pleased to share this Premium content with Executive members. For information on how to upgrade to a Premium-level subscription, contact Lindsey Fox at lindsey@steelmarketupdate.com. Monthly Key Market Indicators (KMI) improved over the past month, advancing repeatedly since hitting a recent low last November, according to the latest analysis by […]
We’ve just seen the biggest week-over-week increase in hot-rolled coil prices since the frenzy following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year. SMU’s hot-rolled coil (HRC) price is up $140 per ton ($7 per cwt) week over week. That’s our biggest such gain since prices jumped $210 per ton in mid-March of last year at the height of […]