Our SMU Community Chat attendees reacted to Wednesday’s webinar with Barry Zekelman of Zekelman Industries by flooding my office with emails. Readers of my editorial in Thursday’s issue of Steel Market Update also chose to provide their opinions on the subjects discussed. Emotions were running high as some thought I was being disrespectful to Mr. […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled and plate steels extended during the month of May following steady declines in April as demand suffered from the government shutdowns of nonessential businesses to stem the spread of COVID-19. Lead times for steel delivery are a measure of demand at the mill level—the longer the lead […]
Negotiations between producers and buyers of flat rolled and plate steels have continued to tighten following two price increase announcements by the mills in May. However, the majority of buyers responding to Steel Market Update’s canvass of the market this week say the mills are still willing to talk price to secure orders, given the […]
You plan for as much as you can, and hope for the best… My events team, coupled with the CRU events team out of London, made the determination about a week ago that it was not going to be possible to conduct the SMU Steel Summit Conference at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta […]
Construction jobs reached multi-year lows in many states in April, according to the latest analysis of government data by the Associated General Contractors of America. Construction employment declined in every state except South Dakota, for a loss of 975,000 jobs last month. Employment in the sector was down 13 percent from March to April with […]
Home prices rose 4.4 percent in March compared to a year ago and 4.2 percent from February, according to the latest S&P Core Logic Case Shiller Index. The 20-City Composite edged up 3.9 percent from 3.5 percent in February. The Composite was short one city, Detroit, due to reporting delays related to the COVID-19 pandemic. “March’s […]
New home sales rose slightly in April, inching up 0.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 623,000, according to estimates released jointly today by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Compared to April 2019, home sales declined 6.2 percent. Median sales price was $309,900 and the average […]
Memorial Day 2020 When you want to know where you are in life, look in your closet. There it was, bulging at the seams yet ignored. The cloth bag is blood red. I looked up the color online and the closest match was Vallejo Game Air Bloody Red. It is suspended by a white draw […]
Existing-home sales slid almost 18 percent in April, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales fell 17.8 percent month-over-month and 17.2 percent from a year ago to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.33 million units. Sales were at the lowest level and worst month-over-month decline since July 2010. “The economic lockdowns – occurring […]
U.S. Steel, AK Steel (Cleveland-Cliffs), Nucor, NLMK, ArcelorMittal and UPI all announced price increases today on flat rolled. With the exception of AMUSA, all were +$40/ton. AMUSA provided specific minimum base price guidance of $540 ($27.00.cwt) on hot rolled and $740 ($37.00/cwt) on cold rolled and coated products. Some early comments from various steel service […]
Good steel buyers know everything is negotiable. They understand market momentum, the strengths and weaknesses as well as the needs of their suppliers, as being key ingredients to getting the best steel pricing for their company. Good buyers know the power of the relationships built with their suppliers. They know contract negotiations are different than […]
Steel demand is showing early signs of strengthening, said manufacturing and service center executives during Steel Market Update’s canvass of the market May 11-14, as officials in various states begin to ease coronavirus restrictions allowing businesses to slowly reopen. Half said demand for their products is stable or even improving, while the other half said […]
Housing starts plummeted 30.2 percent in April compared to March, falling to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 891,000 and the lowest level since 2015. Compared to April 2019, starts tumbled 27.9 percent, said the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Building permit authorizations were at a SAAR of 1,074,000, […]
With the expectation of higher scrap prices coming for the month of June, on top of the steep rise in ferrous scrap this month, the mills’ margins may well be squeezed, which will impact negotiations and pricing over the next few weeks. Most steel buyers anticipate a new round of price increases by late May […]
Steel buyers’ attitudes have improved this month as coronavirus restrictions have eased in some areas and companies have begun to get back to business. Steel Market Update asked steel buyers how they view their company’s current prospects for success, as well as their chances for success three to six months in the future. The Current […]
The United States is beginning to go back to work. Automotive plants are scheduled to begin opening this week. The U.S. is working with Mexico to ensure automotive suppliers in Mexico are deemed “essential businesses” and return to work. From my perch here in Florida, traffic has returned to normal, restaurants are open (50 percent […]
We had to change the way we calculate the adjusted data, which will also change how we derive our analysis. Previously, we adjusted the data to mirror the exact mix of service centers that responded to the previous month’s survey. We saw a decrease in participation in the March survey, which we can understand given […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled steel extended slightly this week after declining since mid-March when the government ordered the closing of nonessential businesses to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Lead times for steel delivery are a measure of demand at the mill level—the longer the lead time, the busier the mill. […]
Negotiations between producers and buyers of flat rolled steel have tightened somewhat following the price increase announcements by the mills earlier this month. Steel Market Update’s canvass of the market this week shows that mills are slightly less likely to negotiate on price than they were in April when competitors were scrambling to win orders […]
We had an exceptional SMU Community Chat Webinar with Dr. Chris Kuehl of Armada Corporate Intelligence on Wednesday morning. I am getting nothing but rave reviews of our free webinars, and I encourage you to inform your management and other teammates to register and then tune in at 11 AM ET every Wednesday. Next week […]
Pandemic is a public health issue, not a political issue. I watched just a few minutes of the Senate testimony today with Dr. Fauci, Dr. Redfield of the CDC, Dr. Hahn, commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, and Admiral Giroir, the Assistant Secretary for Health. I thought one question and answer was interesting in […]
A new survey of construction firms by the Associated General Contractors of America shows that two-thirds of firms have reported project cancellations or delays due to concerns about the pandemic or future funding. Fewer construction projects equal more job losses; 43 percent of firms surveyed reported staff cuts between March and May. Construction employment fell […]
March heating and cooling equipment shipments totaled 1.94 million units, up 0.1 percent from the same month one year ago, according to recent data from the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). As a three-month moving average, total heating and cooling shipments were down 0.3 percent. This is the fifth consecutive month total shipments have […]
The “new normal” is to reinvent oneself or the way you will do business going forward. As many of you are aware, I am no spring chicken. Yet I refuse to live in the past. I learned (the hard way – through unexpected career changes) that I needed to constantly keep myself relevant to my […]
The Dodge Momentum Index fell 6.0 percent in April to 135.9. The monthly index by Dodge Data & Analytics measures the first report for nonresidential building projects in planning, which has been shown to lead construction spending by a full year. The commercial component of the index fell 7.6 percent, while the institutional component slid […]
When I started Steel Market Update back in 2008, I knew I wanted to build something that would become a community centered on providing quality market information and a platform from which I could help educate and motivate those within the industry. On the Steel Market Update website, we describe our mission as follows: To […]
Auto sales were expected to be low in April and predictions were correct. Edmunds estimates U.S. sales fell 36.6 percent from March and 52.5 percent compared to April 2019. “April auto sales took the biggest hit we’ve seen in decades,” said Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds’ executive director of Insights. “These bleak figures aren’t just because consumers […]
I am back from my “stay-cation.” Is it just me or is time standing still? I don’t know about your neighborhood, but the landscaping in mine has improved over the past 45 days. I understand there are a lot of home projects ongoing. From a steel executive email to me earlier today, “I told a […]
Having lived through the difficult month of April, steel buyers remain pessimistic about current business conditions, but more hopeful about the future. Steel Market Update asked steel buyers how they view their company’s current prospects for success, as well as their chances for success three to six months in the future. The Current Sentiment reading […]
“Vacation: An extended period of recreating, especially one spent away from home or traveling.” Last week I took “vacation” time off, and unlike the definition above I did little recreating, rarely strayed from home, and did no traveling. How restful is that? The big news from last week was an apparent “firming” of steel prices. […]