Domestic sheet prices slipped again this week across all sheet and plate products. It’s the continuation of a mostly downward trend on the sheet side that we’ve seen since mid/late April. Hot-rolled, cold-rolled and coated products were all down $20–25 per ton ($1–1.25 per cwt). Plate prices slipped a more modest $10 per ton. SMU’s […]
Raw steel production by US mills dropped last week, and capability utilization remains below 80%, where it’s now stayed for 15 straight weeks. Rate at or above 80% are considered healthy. Recall that utilization below the 80% benchmark contributed to the 2018 implementation of Section 232 tariffs. Domestic steel output was 1,669,000 net tons in the week […]
Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. said its fourth quarter ended Aug. 31 results were negatively impacted by declining ferrous and nonferrous sales prices and demand. The trend partially offsets the benefits of strong prices for its finished steel products. Tighter supply flows and an extended outage at its Everett, Mass., recycling facility were partly to blame […]
With September’s quarter close comes the wave of corporate analysts’ reports. Several were released this week, and all warn of challenging times ahead. Demand and prices are falling, as costs are rising, leaving the aluminum value chain scissored in the near term. As context for these results, CRU has refreshed June’s base economic forecast and […]
US sheet prices continue to slide, and the weakness in the domestic market has buyers confident that they can get domestic suppliers to negotiate. For hot-rolled coil, imports have not been very advantageous relative to futures. There have been some workable offers for tandem mill products. But buyers have been more inclined to buy domestically or […]
The following article on the hot-rolled coil (HRC), scrap and financial futures markets was written by Jack Marshall of Crunch Risk LLC. Here is how Jack saw trading over the past week: Hot Rolled HR spot physical indexes have remained anchored just above the mid-$700/net ton area with one more week to go before the […]
This week, foreign hot-rolled coil (HRC) offers little to no cost advantage over domestic steel, according to Steel Market Update’s latest analysis. Foreign prices now hold a theoretical discount of 0–1% over domestic steel, after adjusting foreign prices for estimated freight costs, trader margins, and tariffs. This relationship has teetered back and forth lately, with […]
Steel prices trended lower again this week, the second consecutive week of moderate declines, according to Steel Market Update sources. Sheet prices declined between $10–30 per net ton compared to last week, now at levels not seen since late 2020. Plate prices were broadly unchanged from last week, but are slowly easing towards levels last […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor Sheet prices took split paths between eastern and western regions. Prices in Asia found support from restocking in China and supply disruptions in South Korea. Meanwhile, western markets remained weak, and we expect this to persist over the near term. October is the […]
Raw steel production by US mills rose modestly last week, but capability utilization remans below 80%. Utilization rates haven’t eclipsed 80% in 14 weeks. This matters because rates at or above 80% are considered healthy. Indeed, rates below that level were part of the justification for the implementation of Section 232 tariffs in 2018. Domestic steel output […]
Imported sheet and plate products arrived at US ports at a slower clip in August, resulting in them accounting for a lower share of the domestic market for the second straight month, according to a Steel Market Update analysis of import data from the US Commerce Department and domestic shipment figures from the American Iron […]
By CRU Senior Analyst, Puneet Paliwal, from CRU’s Scrap, DRI/HBI & Pig Iron Monitor Global scrap prices stay subdued while those of ore-based metallics have found some support. Overall metallics demand continues to be hampered by the steel market weakness, a trend which may sustain through the short term, particularly in Europe. The CRU metallics price […]
News that the Biden Administration is considering a total ban on Russian aluminum imports lifted the market Tuesday afternoon, Oct. 11. The LME aluminum three-month price increased sharply to a high of $2,400 per ton before some of the gains were reversed by the close. The price saw some volatile shifts during the week but […]
The relationship between hot-rolled coil (HRC) and prime scrap prices has stabilized in the last few weeks, according to Steel Market Update data. After briefly stalling in August, hot rolled prices have began to slide downwards again since the beginning of this month. Busheling scrap prices settled at down $45 per gross ton last week, the […]
The apparent lack of change in US plate prices is fast approaching the one-month mark. Prices haven’t moved since Nucor announced a $120-per-ton ($6-per-cwt) price cut on discrete plate on Sept. 19. Despite the recent sideways trend, prices remain under pressure due to a lack of demand. But could potential imports usher in another round […]
Editor’s note: SMU Contributor Michael D’Angelo is a researcher and trader at Marex who has been active in the metals markets for two years. In his role, Mike performs fundamental and quantitative analysis which directly leads to actionable trading/risk management strategies across the base, precious and ferrous metals derivative spaces. Prior to joining Marex, Mike received […]
The price advantaged once offered by foreign hot-rolled coil (HRC) over domestic steel is gone, according to Steel Market Update’s latest foreign versus domestic price analysis. Foreign prices are now higher than domestic prices after adjusting for freight costs, trader margins, and tariffs. Domestic HRC is priced as much as 2% below current foreign prices. The gap between US and foreign […]
US apparent steel supply declined 3% in August to 8.98 million net tons, according to the latest US Department of Commerce and American Iron and Steel Institute data. This is the lowest figure since February 2022 and the second lowest figure in the past 16 months. August supply levels are 4% below the average monthly […]
Raw steel production by US mills slipped back down last week, unable to maintain the slight uptick seen the week prior. Last week’s utilization also edged down compared to the previous week. Utilization rates haven’t eclipsed the 80% mark in 14 weeks, the longest run since the pandemic. Domestic steel output was 1,680,000 net tons in […]
Domestic sheet prices fell sharply this week, marking their first substantial drop following nearly two months of mostly sideways or modestly downward moves. Another month of falling scrap prices appears to have been the catalyst. Another is this: Mills that had talked about discipline on the way up are now fighting for market share, sources […]
H2 Green Steel (H2GS) is partnering with Midrex Technologies for its new direct reduced iron (DRI) facility in northern Sweden. Using Midrex’s technology, H2GS’s 2.1-million-metric-tons-per-year facility will run on 100% green hydrogen. Paul Wurth, an SMS group company, will also provide technology and equipment for the first-of-its-kind DRI plant. “We started working together almost two […]
US steel exports rebounded 8% from July to August, according to the latest US Commerce Department data. Just over 800,000 net tons entered the country during the month, now the third-highest monthly export rate seen in the last four years (behind March and April 2022). Exports on a rolling annual basis are now at a […]
Steel Market Update sources report that ferrous scrap prices fell again in October. The drop marks the sixth consecutive month of declining scrap tags. Prime scrap prices fell an average of $45 per ton, while obsolete grades were relatively flat to down $25. Scrap sources attributed falling prices to weakening demand on both the domestic and […]
Independent hot-dip galvanizer and coil coater AZZ Inc. achieved record sales in the second quarter (ended Aug. 31) of its fiscal 2023 year. The quarter was the first to include results from Precoat Metals, whose acquisition was completed in May of this year. Total Q2 sales reached $406.7 million. This includes record sales of $165.8 […]
Ingram Marine Group, the largest US barge operator, on Oct. 6 declared force majeure in a letter to customers. The company said low water levels had made it impossible to make timely deliveries. Vessels have run aground near Memphis, Tenn., and there is a logjam of more than 122 vessels/barges near Stack Island, Miss., impeding […]
US plate prices have been unchanged for nearly three weeks. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t under pressure. Buyers remain mostly on the sidelines of the spot market and are working through inventories as demand slows to a crawl. The market has been quiet since Nucor announced a $120-per-ton ($6-per-cwt) price cut on discrete plate […]
Final US Census Bureau data indicates that steel imports totaled 2.51 million net tons during the month of August, just 267 tons higher than the preliminary figures released in late September. This is down 6% from the prior month. It is also the third lowest monthly rate in the past year and a half (behind […]
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 […]
The temptation to purchase foreign hot-rolled coil (HRC) at a bargain has all but faded again, with adjusted foreign prices now offering little or no advantage over domestic steel, according to Steel Market Update’s latest analysis. After taking freight costs, trader margins and tariffs into consideration, foreign HRC prices for two of the three regions […]
The spread between hot-rolled coil and galvanized base prices has narrowed further since our September update, now standing at a 28-week low. This is now the second lowest level seen in the past 10 months, just behind the March 2022 low of $300 per net ton. The relationship between hot rolled and galvanized prices has […]