New home sales sank 5.9% in April from downward revised data in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 863,000, according to estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau and Dept. of Housing and Urban Development. Other than a weather-related dip in February, April’s annual rate was the lowest since June 2020. A new home […]
A shortage of inventory resulted in a third straight month of decline for existing-home sales. Sales in April fell 2.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.85 million, reported the National Association of Realtors. “Home sales were down again in April from the prior month, as housing supply continues to fall short of demand,” […]
Ford has joined General Motors in extending North American assembly plant outages into the third quarter because of a persistent shortage of microchips. “Our teams continue making the most of our available semiconductor allocation and will continue finding unique solutions to provide as many high-quality vehicles as possible to our dealers and customers,” a Ford […]
March heating and cooling equipment shipments jumped 33.1% over February, now at 2.24 million units, according to recent data from the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). This is the third highest level in SMU’s history, just behind the June 2020 high of 2.28 million units and the June 2018 high of 2.27 million units. […]
April housing starts fell 9.5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.57 million units, following March’s fastest climb since June 2006. Soaring construction costs and home prices were blamed for the April decline. Single-family starts plunged 13.4%, although multi-unit homes gained 4%, said the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and […]
Japanese automaker Toyota continues to grapple with shortages of microchips and other parts at its North American manufacturing facilities. But some market participants are looking beyond automotive plant idlings to a potential rebound in auto builds in the second half of the year. “Toyota is currently experiencing a supply shortage that is affecting production at […]
Auto assemblies in North America backpedaled in April as the ongoing shortage of semiconductor chips intensified and hindered automakers’ ability to produce cars and trucks, according to LMC Automotive (LMCA). April’s production totaled 1.087 million units, down from 1.217 million units in March or 10.7%. March saw a bump in auto production—the first in nearly […]
Construction employment stalled in April, said the Associated General Contractors of America. Both nonresidential contractors and homebuilders reported difficulty sourcing materials and labor. “Contractors are experiencing unprecedented intensity and a range of cost increases, supply-chain disruptions and worker shortages that have kept firms from increasing their workforces,” said AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson. “These challenges […]
Two of the “Big Three” U.S. automakers are extending downtime at their North American plants into the summer months because of the ongoing microchip shortage. And one, Ford, has upcoming outages at all its U.S. assembly plants besides one in Dearborn, Mich., that makes the F-150 pickup truck, the best-selling vehicle in the United States. […]
The Dodge Momentum Index gained 8.6% in April, jumping to 162.4. The index has rebounded 77% from its nine-year low in January. Compared to April 2020, the first full month of COVID-19 shutdowns, the index is 31% higher, said Dodge Data & Analytics. Construction projects in healthcare and laboratories are driving the institutional sector’s 50% […]
Auto assemblies in North America gained ground in March for the first time since October, according to LMC Automotive (LMCA). North American production rose to 1.217 million units in March, up from 1.092 million in February, but production continues to suffer from the ongoing shortage of semiconductor chips. North American production was up 20.1% in […]
Steel Market Update is pleased to share this exerpt from one of our Premium articles with Executive members. For information on the benefits of upgrading to a Premium-level membership, email Paige@SteelMarketUpdate.com. Auto assemblies in North America gained ground in March for the first time since October, according to LMC Automotive (LMCA). North American production rose to 1.217 […]
The construction sector has seen positive, but uneven, growth as it works through the effects of the COVID pandemic. Total construction expenditures in March were $1.513 trillion, up 0.2% from February’s revised estimate of $1.509 trillion, reported the U.S. Census Bureau. Total construction was also up 5.9% compared to a year ago when construction spending was $1.463 […]
U.S. automotive sales were robust in April despite production challenges from the continuing shortage of semiconductor chips. April sales were estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of over 18 million vehicles and may be one of the best months ever, said Cox Automotive. April sales were well over Cox Auto’s forecast of 16.5 million. […]
U.S. automotive sales saw their lowest third-quarter performance in a decade, a 13.4% decline in new vehicle sales, due primarily to low inventory and high prices. In September, new-vehicle inventory was down nearly 60% from 2020, and sales suffered accordingly, said Cox Automotive. New-vehicle sales totaled 3.395 million in the third quarter, the slowest third […]
Ford expects to lose 50% of its planned second-quarter production because the global chip shortage has become a “significant headwind” for the company. The Dearborn, Mich.-based automaker had already lost 17% of its planned production in the first quarter because of the chip issue, and it anticipates losing 10% of forecast output in the second […]
Despite a homebuilding boom and an improving economy, construction employment fell in 203 metro areas in the 12 months from March 2020 to March 2021, reported the Associated General Contractors of America in their analysis of the latest government data. The 57.0% decrease in jobs over the 12-month period has hampered the industry on top […]
Home prices continue to escalate and potential buyers are finding themselves embroiled in bidding wars. The latest S&P Core-Logic Case-Shiller Home Price Index found prices rose 12% year-over-year in February. The 20-City composite rose 11.9%, compared with 11.1% in January, with 19 of 20 cities reporting price gains. “The National Composite’s 12% gain is the […]
Ford has extended downtime at assembly plants in the U.S. and Canada into May because of an ongoing microchip supply squeeze. “The global semiconductor shortage continues, presenting challenges to a number of industries – including automakers worldwide,” a Ford spokeswoman said. The Dearborn, Mich.-based automaker will take outages the weeks of May 3 and May […]
Home builders had a busy month in March as housing starts jumped 19.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.74 million. According to the report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau, starts were 37% higher than the rate one year ago. Construction started on 1.24 million […]
The effect of COVID-19 and the shelter-in-place orders that followed had widespread impact across the U.S. construction sector. States that have had extensive and extended stoppage measures in place, however, have struggled disproportionally to rebound, according to the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). Procore Technologies Inc., AGC’s data collection partner, said the impact of […]
Buyers searching for that perfect home this spring will have plenty of competition despite soaring prices. Sales in March climbed 12.3% from a year ago to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.01 million, says the National Association of Realtors. Inventory, however, is at near-historic lows causing sales to dip 3.7% from February. “Consumers are […]
The global semiconductor shortage continues to disrupt North American vehicle production roughly four months after the issue emerged in a key steel end market. The result: Production at multiple North American assembly plants is down through the end of this month, and some are down in May as well. Here is where things stand to date. General Motors […]
Housing construction rebounded in March as demand for newly built homes was spurred by tight existing-home inventory and low mortgages interest rates. Construction starts for privately-owned houses soared 19.4% from February to March, and 37% from a year ago, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.74 million units Starts for single-family homes leapt 15.3% […]
General Motors has secured enough microchips to resume output earlier than planned at one U.S. assembly plant and to avoid taking downtime at a facility in Mexico. “GM’s supply chain organization has made strides working with our supply base to mitigate the near-term impacts of the semiconductor situation,” a company spokesman told Steel Market Update on […]
Given the heightened urgency to reduce carbon emissions and address climate change, nearly all the world’s automakers plan to replace at least some of the internal combustion cars and trucks in their lineups with fully electric vehicles (EVs). GM, notably, has pledged to introduce 30 new EVs by 2025 and to produce nothing but EVs […]
Like those in the steel industry, aluminum suppliers see opportunity in the coming wave of battery electrical vehicles (BEVs). Indeed, they claim, even more opportunity for aluminum than for steel. Automakers are hard at work designing battery-powered cars and trucks with zero emissions as efforts to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions to slow climate change […]
Swedish steelmaker SSAB and automaker Volvo have teamed up to make what they hope will be the first vehicles made from fossil-free steel. Volvo plans to begin production of concept vehicles this year using fossil-free steel produced by SSAB, which is pioneering a hydrogen-based steelmaking process. Small-scale serial production will begin in 2022, and mass […]
Ford has joined General Motors in extending downtime at North American assembly plants because of a chip shortage that continues to roil the global automotive industry. The fresh wave of outages means that seven of nine Ford plants in the U.S. and Canada will be down or operating at a reduced schedule the week of […]
General Motors has restarted production at one U.S. assembly plant but taken additional downtime at a host of others because of a microchip shortage that has plagued the auto industry since late last year. The Detroit-based automaker, the largest in the U.S., will resume production at its Wentzville, Mo., assembly plant on the week of […]