The U.S. construction sector saw an employment boost in October, as firms added 44,000 workers to their payrolls. The increase was supported by a 10.4% decline in the sector’s unemployment rate, while nonresidential construction firms posted back-to-back increases for the first time since January, reports the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) in its latest […]
North American auto assemblies recovered in October after reaching the lowest monthly total year-to-date in September. October’s production total jumped 18.1% sequentially but was still down 24.6% year on year. The impact of the chip shortage and supply-chain disruptions is still constraining the automotive sector. Semiconductor scarcity and parts delays had further worsened through the […]
Production disruptions from the semiconductor chip shortage across the U.S. automotive landscape are little changed from Steel Market Update’s mid-October analysis. The widespread stoppages and assembly cuts were piling up through October and into November, but the latest feedback from automakers suggests the shortage may be easing. Last month Toyota announced plans to cut its […]
The U.S. construction sector slipped in September as spending faded for the second consecutive month following a downward revision in August’s results, the Commerce Department reported. The Census Bureau’s report on construction spending shows that the value of residential construction put in place in September was up 19% year on year but fell 0.4% month […]
Total construction spending declined in September for the first time since February, as both residential and nonresidential construction slipped, according to a new analysis of federal construction spending data by the Associated General Contractors of America. AGC continues to lobby for the House to complete work on the bipartisan infrastructure bill that the Senate passed […]
Gibraltar Industries Inc. reported net income of $27.9 million in its third quarter, down nearly 11.0% from the same period last year due to rising labor costs and supply-chain shortages, company executives said. The Buffalo, N.Y.-based manufacturer and distributor of building products reported a 24.5% increase in revenue to $369.4 million during the period. Sales […]
The BMW Group has reported a deal to source low-carbon steel from H2 Green Steel (H2GS) beginning in 2025. The German automaker will source the green steel from the large-scale, hydrogen-based steel plant H2GS is building in Norrbotten in northern Sweden. At more than 95% lower gross CO2 emissions than conventional production methods, H2GS’s steel will […]
The impact of the pandemic on the domestic construction sector cannot be overstated, as more than two-thirds of U.S. states have struggled to add jobs since the onset of the global health crisis. Only 14 states and the District of Columbia have increased construction jobs since February 2020, reports the Associated General Contractors of America […]
Existing-home sales recovered in September after waning the month prior, reported the National Association of Realtors. All four of the major U.S. regions registered month-over-month gains, while the South was sideways. Annually, however, only the South held steady, while each of the remaining three regions reported declining sales versus the same year-ago period. September sales […]
Strong consumer demand helped push builder confidence higher in October despite growing affordability challenges stemming from rising material prices and shortages. Builder sentiment in the market for newly built single-family homes moved four points higher to 80 in October, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. Despite the increase, […]
General Motors Co. will extend production downtime at its Orion Assembly through the end of the month, a company spokesperson confirmed to Steel Market Update. The automaker’s Lake Orion, Mich., assembly plant, down since Aug. 23 due to the semiconductor scarcity, will extend its downtime to include the weeks of Oct. 18 and Oct. 25. […]
North American auto assemblies fell in September, reaching the second lowest monthly total year-to-date. The impact of the chip shortage and supply-chain disruptions pulled automotive production down nearly 13% month on month. Semiconductor scarcity and parts delays further worsened, reducing vehicle inventories and causing regional sales to tumble during the month, according to LMC Automotive […]
The prices contractors pay for construction materials rose further in September despite a recent decline in a few materials’ prices. The costs still far surpass the prices contractors charged in the 12-months ending in September, reports the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) in its latest analysis of government data. “Construction materials costs remain out […]
Construction employment totaled 7,447,000 jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis in September, an increase of 22,000 month on month, reports the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) in its latest analysis of government data. September’s total was 201,000 or 2.6% below the pre-pandemic peak from February 2020. Residential construction employment expanded by 3,400 in September, […]
United Auto Workers (UAW) members at John Deere have set up pickets after a midnight strike deadline lapsed. The strike at the Moline, Ill.-based heavy equipment manufacturer impacts more than 10,000 workers at 14 facilities – most of them in the Midwest but some as far afield as Colorado and Georgia. “Our members at John Deere […]
Heavy equipment maker Deere & Co. faces a midnight strike deadline after United Auto Workers (UAW) union members overwhelmingly rejected a tentative contract agreement. The deadline has been set for Wednesday, Oct. 13, at 11:59 pm after approximately 90% of UAW members rejected the tentative pact, the union said. Both sides continue to bargain in […]
U.S. heating and cooling equipment shipments slowed in August to 2.05 million units, down 2.4% from July and down 11.4% from June’s record-high of 2.32 million units, according to recent data from the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). August levels are down 1.8% from levels seen one year prior. Recall that 2020 monthly shipment […]
Stellantis – the Dutch parent company of Chrysler – has extended downtime at one of its U.S. plants because of the ongoing global microchip shortage, a company spokeswoman said. The Auburn Hills, Mich.-based automaker’s assembly plant in Belvidere, Ill., will be down through the end of October, she said. “Stellantis continues to work closely with our […]
The Dodge Momentum Index rebounded in September after contracting for three successive months. The index registered 164.9 in September, an 11% gain against the revised August reading of 148.0, according to data and analytics from the Dodge Construction Network. The improved Momentum Index in September suggests developers are looking past the current concerns over pricing, […]
The U.S. construction sector was virtually unchanged in August, as spending was largely flat for a second straight month. Increase in public sector projects was offset by weakness in the private sector, the Commerce Department reported. Supply chain disruptions, rising materials prices and labor shortages continue to keep the construction sector captive. The trend has […]
Total construction spending was flat for a second consecutive month in August, as a decrease in nonresidential projects offset continuing gains in residential construction, reported the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). Spending on infrastructure year-to-date declined when compared to the same year-ago period, leading the AGC to urge the House of Representatives to promptly […]
Job losses continue to have widespread effect on the construction sector. Nearly one-third of U.S. metro areas lost construction jobs during the 12-month period ended August 2021, reports the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) in its latest analysis of government data. As the fate of a bipartisan infrastructure bill remains uncertain in the U.S. […]
Stellantis – the Dutch parent company of Chrysler – has extended downtime at two of its North American plants because of the ongoing global microchip shortage, a company spokeswoman said. The automaker’s assembly plant in Belvidere, Ill., will be down the week of Oct. 4 as will its assembly plant north of the U.S. border […]
General Motors has resumed production at most of North American assembly plants, but has extended downtime at others – notably in Canada and Mexico. Crosstown rival Ford has also scheduled additional downtime at some of its U.S. plants. Here is where things stand with Detroit-based GM, the United States’ largest automaker: GM’s Lansing Grand River (LGR) assembly […]
North American auto assemblies rebounded in August after light vehicle production hit a 14-month low the prior month. Despite the increase, the impact of the chip shortage continued to worsen, diminishing vehicle inventories and pushing regional sales down during the month, according to LMC Automotive (LMCA). Total North American vehicle production, including personal and commercial […]
It’s far too early to say that the automotive sector – and the steelmakers who supply it – are out of the woods when it comes to the global chip shortage. But for the first time in weeks, General Motors and several other automakers with North American operations have announced no additional downtime or have […]
By CRU Analysts Zhenzhen Jiang and Kevin Bai, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor Evergrande, the second-largest property developer in China, has grown to be the most indebted, accumulating more than RMB1.97 tn in liabilities since China rolled out the “three red lines” policies. Market investors are concerned that Evergrande will collapse and default on […]
Housing starts increased 3.9% in August, propelled by a surge in multifamily production while single-family starts edged lower. The rise brought the seasonally adjusted annual rate to 1.62 million units, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Ongoing supply chain limitations and labor challenges […]
Builder confidence ended a three-month decline in September, edging up slightly following some correction in lumber prices and strong housing demand, according to the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). Although the housing sector continues to struggle with supply chain disruptions and labor challenges that are impacting housing affordability, builder sentiment for newly built single-family […]
General Motors has extended downtime at some of its assembly plants into mid to late October because of ongoing parts and semiconductor shortages. “Although the situation remains complex and very fluid, GM continues to prioritize full-size truck production, which remains in high demand,” a spokesman for the Detroit-based automaker said. Here is where things stand […]