Nucor Corp. aims to hold plate prices steady with the opening of its November order book. The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said the flat pricing would be effective Tuesday, Oct. 4. “We reserve the right to review and re-quote any offers that are not confirmed with either a Nucor sales acknowledgement or written acceptance by both […]
Antidumping and countervailing duties on aluminum extrusions from China will remain in place for another five years. In the final results of the expedited sunset review of the duties, the US International Trade Commission voted unanimously that removing the duties would be likely to lead to the continuation or recurrence of material injury to the […]
With a total investment of $150 million Canadian (US$109.9 million), Tenaris recently consolidated its seamless and welded pipe manufacturing operations in Canada into one location in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, to better serve the country’s energy sector. An inauguration ceremony with company executives, customers, employees, and government officials was held on Sept. 27 to mark […]
The London Metal Exchange (LME) has launched a discussion paper on whether to delist Russian primary aluminum from its contract. A discussion paper is like what we do in the US when we ask for public comment on an issue. This decision to ask for market commentary is a 180-degree change of direction from what […]
Prices for steel sheet remained mostly flat again this week, up or down modestly depending on the product. Hot-rolled coil was up $5 per ton ($0.25 per cwt), cold-rolled was down $10 per ton, and both galvanized and Galvalume base prices were down $5 per ton. What we’ve seen for the last month is an […]
Preliminary US Census Bureau data indicates that steel imports will have totaled 2.51 million net tons during the month of August. This is down 6% from the prior month and potentially the lowest monthly rate seen since February of this year. Recall that monthly import levels also declined 6% from June to July. August figures […]
Raw steel production by US mills took another slight hit. Last week’s utilization is the lowest since the week of Feb. 13, 2021, and the lowest total output since the week of Jan. 2, 2021. Utilization rates haven’t eclipsed the 80% mark in twelve weeks, the longest run since the pandemic. Domestic output was 1,683,000 net tons […]
Aluminum May Be Approaching the End of Its Long Destocking Cycle Last week, I described our premise about demand versus real consumption. We talked about the market’s natural tendency to destock when prices take a beating as they have during most of 2022. The latest Index of Orders from the Aluminum Association offers some early […]
Prices for each of the steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis decreased over the last 30 days, further declining from the record-high levels seen in March and April. Through the latest data available as of Sept. 21, zinc prices decreased 12% in the last month, busheling scrap and aluminum prices fell 7%, pig […]
Imported sheet and plate products arrived at US ports at a slower clip in July, resulting in them accounting for a lower share of the domestic market, according to US Commerce Department data. Imports’ share of US sheet and plate markets peaked in December, with sheet reaching its highest level in the past 4.5 years. The trend […]
Sheet prices drifted sideways to down this week, while plate prices fell substantually following the Nucor price decrease announcement on Monday. SMU’s hot-rolled index eased an average of $15 per net ton this week to $770 per ton. This is now tied with our late August price for the lowest HRC price seen since November […]
Zekelman Industries is set to build a new steel tube galvanizing facility in Blytheville, Ark. The new, 200,000-tons-per-year Wheatland Tube facility will share a campus with Zekelman’s existing Atlas Tube operations there. The new facility will serve the fence, solar, and mechanical markets, producing tubes using Wheatland’s ThunderCoat™ inline galvanized coating. Construction is slated to […]
Nucor Corp. is significantly lowering plate prices effective immediately, largely impacting its November plate order book. The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said discrete plate prices, as well as prices for normalized plate, will be $120 per ton ($6 per cwt) lower. Prices for certain cut-to-length items are unchanged from its Sept. 2 price announcement. “We reserve […]
GrafTech Mexico SA de CV has temporarily suspended manufacturing of graphite electrodes at its facility in Monterrey, Nuevo León, after an inspection revealed its operating license is no longer in effect. Discovery of the invalid operating license was made during an inspection by the State Attorney’s Office for the Secretary of Environment of the State […]
The spread between hot-rolled coil (HRC) and prime scrap prices has changed course in recent weeks, according to Steel Market Update data. Busheling scrap prices declined for the fifth consecutive month in September, while hot-rolled prices have levelled out in recent weeks. Overall, we had seen a shrinking delta between the two products from May […]
Long liquidation as opposed to short selling? I spoke this week at two diverse industry groups: the Aluminum Extruders Council (AEC) and the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI). While differing in their sector concentration, the audiences had the same questions: • What’s going on with the London Metal Exchange (LME) aluminum price? • Why […]
Sheet and plate prices continued to drift sideways this week as steel mills attempt to hold the line despite weak signals from the scrap market. Mills are more unified in trying to hold the line around $800 per ton ($40 per cwt) on hot-rolled coil following deep discounting ahead of announced price increases last month. […]
Zekelman Industries’ newest tubular products facility will soon be up and running outside of Chicago. The 1-million-square-foot facility in Rochelle, Ill., will house four in-line galvanizing tube mills with a capacity exceeding 300,000 tons annually. An automated hot-dip galvanizing line with 100,000 tons of annual production capacity is also being added to the facility. “While […]
Raw steel production by US mills recovered last week after declining for two straight weeks. Despite the week-on-week (WoW) gain, the total was still the second-lowest total since February 2021, while utilization rates haven’t eclipsed the 80% mark in ten weeks. Domestic output was 1,723,000 net tons in the week ending Sept. 10, while capacity […]
Raw steel production by US mills took a hit last week after a one-week recovery. Last week’s utilization is the lowest since the week of Feb. 13, 2021, and the lowest total output since the week of Jan. 2, 2021. Utilization rates haven’t eclipsed the 80% mark in eleven weeks, the longest run since the pandemic. Domestic […]
US apparent steel supply recovered 2% in July to 9.23 million net tons, according to the latest US Department of Commerce and American Iron and Steel Institute data. July supply levels are 2% below the average monthly rate across the past year of 9.41 million tons. Recall that supply reached a six-year high last September at 9.92 million […]
Natural gas inspired staggering energy prices crush primary aluminum economics The suspension of gas deliveries through the Nord Stream pipeline has further aggravated an already grim energy situation for European aluminum producers. Prices for day-ahead power in Western Europe are stunning in their magnitude: 404 euros/megawatt hour were published on Friday for Germany, France, the […]
US steel exports declined 7% from June to July, now at a five-month low of 742,000 net tons according to the latest US Commerce Department data. Just one month prior, we saw the third-highest monthly export rate seen in the past four years at 800,000 tons. On a 12-month moving average basis (12MMA), annual steel […]
The spread between hot-rolled coil and galvanized base prices has narrowed over the past four months and stands at a 24-week low. The relationship between hot rolled and galvanized base prices has been volatile since late 2021. In the last year, galvanized has sold at a premium of as little as $195 per ton over […]
Final Census data shows that 2.68 million net tons of steel imports entered the country in July, down 6% compared to the month prior and the lowest rate in the past five months. The preliminary import figures reported last week were just 4,000 tons shy of the final count (most of the flat rolled products […]
Sheet and plate prices were flat or down this week as some market participants questioned whether tags might be beginning to inflect lower. Hot-rolled and cold-rolled prices were down $5 per ton week over week. Galvanized (down $55 per ton) and Galvalume (down $40 per ton) fell more significantly. The steeper declines in coated products […]
Raw steel production by US mills fell for the second straight week and to the lowest total since February 2021. Domestic output was 1,715,000 net tons in the week ending Sept. 3, while capacity utilization was 77.8%. Utilization rates haven’t eclipsed the 80% mark in nine weeks, according to the latest data from the American […]
Nucor Corp. aims to keep prices for some plate products flat and to decrease prices on certain cut-to-length items by $50-150 per ton ($2.50-7.50 per cwt). The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker announced the move with the opening of its October order book for plate. “We reserve the right to review and re-quote any offers that are […]
Prices for five of the seven steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis decreased over the last 30 days, further declining from the record levels seen in March and April. Through the latest data available as of August 31, pig iron prices decreased 38% in the last month, busheling scrap prices fell 14%, aluminum […]
Flat-rolled steel prices were steady to up based on the data points SMU collected this week. There’s undoubtedly been pressure from recent mill price hikes, but it’s still far too early to tell if they will stick or if this is just a blip. Sheet prices rose for each of our products this week. The […]