Category: Steel Markets

Glenfarne Alaska LNG and POSCO signed a preliminary strategic agreement during the GasTech Conference in Milan on Thursday.  

Following a 3% decline in June, the amount of steel shipped outside of the US edged up 1% in July to 623,000 short tons. July was the sixth-lowest monthly export rate since the COVID-19 pandemic, and...

Participants in the hot-rolled steel sheet market expect the market to remain subdued through the end of the year. 

Market sources say demand for domestic plate refuses to budge despite stagnating prices. 

Shipments of iron ore across the Great Lakes dropped to 5 million short tons (st) in August, according to the latest data from the Lake Carriers’ Association. That’s down 9.1% compared to August 2024 and 2% lower than the month’s 5-year average. All told, the year-to-date (YTD) iron ore volumes through August totaled 26.7 million […]

Here are highlights of what’s happened this past week and a few upcoming things to keep an eye on. 

he US longs market remained stable this month despite ongoing challenges from tariff-impacted imports, even as end-use demand was relatively unchanged and scrap prices held flat in August.

Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) President and Chief Operating Officer, Barry Schneider, remains bullish about the Fort Wayne, Ind.-based steelmaker’s position in the current market.  

Across the US and throughout the steel supply chain, market participants are reporting another painfully quiet week for hot-rolled (HR) coil sales.  

Domestic sheet prices in the US remained under pressure, limiting interest in imports, while domestic prices for longs products continued to rise.

While boarding Airforce One on Friday, US President Donald Trump stated that he would be setting more steel tariffs and putting ~100% tariffs on semiconductors and chips.  

U.S. Steel, Allegheny County executive Sara Innamorato, and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro clarified details from early reports about the Clairton Coke Works facility explosion just one day earlier.

Market participants said they have high hopes that the stable hot-rolled spot market will improve as the year rolls on.  

Sources in the carbon and alloy steel plate market said they are less discouraged by market uncertainty resulting from tariffs or foreign relations, but are instead, eager to see disruption to the flat pricing environment.

The Dodge Momentum Index (DMI) jumped 20.8% in July and is now up 27% year-to-date, according to the latest data released by Dodge Construction Network.

Oil and gas drilling in the US slowed for a third consecutive week, while activity in Canada hovered just shy of the 19-week high reached two weeks prior.

This week’s SMU survey reveals that a growing number of steel market participants are weary of tariffs and are awaiting evidence of progress reshoring.    At the start of 2025, now-second-term President, Donald Trump, pronounced that his plan to implement tariffs would result in increased revenue for the US.

Hot rolled spot market participants reported another week of moderate demand and ample supply, with no strong signs that conditions will change next week. 

US plate market participants are not fazed by the constricted nature of the current spot market pricing environment.   Right now, they said, mill’s choosing to hold prices from one month to the next makes sense because service centers remain amply supplied and demand is stable.  Modest upticks or slips in prices are aligned with most of the participants' expectations right now.

Seasonal steel slowdowns combined with ongoing anxieties about tariffs and mill strategies have dampened sentiment for several hot-rolled steel market participants this week.  Buyers are jittery, market stands still The operator of a Midwest-based service center said that steel buyers are scared.   “Everyone is afraid to buy steel right now. Unless you’re on a […]

Despite improved operating results, SSAB Americas' second-quarter and H1’25 profits fell short of those of last year.

The total volume of raw steel produced around the globe fell by 5% from May to June, according to recent data published by the World Steel Association (worldsteel).

Metalforming manufacturers say they’re more confident that near-term economic conditions are improving

Galvanized steel prices ping-ponged in the $50/hundredweight range during the month of July, settling in at roughly the same position as in June.

The United Steelworkers (USW) labor union celebrated recent news of the signed agreement between Atlas Holdings and Evraz NA in which the Connecticut-based private equity company said it plans to acquire North America’s Evraz facilities.

Steel sheet buyers report feeling bogged down by the ongoing stresses of stagnant demand, news fatigue, tariff negotiations or implementation timelines, and persistent macroeconomic uncertainty.

Steel market participants contend that buyers will remain in “wait-and-see" mode until some market stability is restored. 

Subsidized Chinese steel imports and cheap steel products from Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) entering Latin American (LATAM) are threatening the region's steel market.

The forceful headwinds bearing down on steel markets across the globe have created demand challenges and sent prices southward. The US, however, challenged the global trend.  

Several steel market sources say they were blindsided when mills increased spot prices for hot-rolled coils this week.