Foreign steel imports for May are trending toward a 2.3 million net ton month, based on the data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce earlier this week. April imports were just shy 4.0 million net tons. In the graphic below, we are tracking the license rate for the first two weeks of a month […]
Flat rolled steel prices were mixed again this week. Benchmark hot rolled saw erosion at the low end and a slight increase at the top end of our range. The net result being HRC is unchanged compared to one week ago. Other products saw similar adjustments with most averages being close to where they were […]
March apparent steel supply rose 13.2 percent over February to 9,935,479 net tons, according to the latest data from the U.S. Department of Commerce and the American Iron and Steel Institute. Apparent steel supply is calculated by adding domestic steel shipments and finished U.S. steel imports, then subtracting total U.S. steel exports. This is the […]
Flat rolled and plate prices had yet another mixed week as there seems to be a semblance of balance in the flat rolled side of the market, while plate customers wait for new pricing. Hot rolled prices were essentially unchanged with Steel Market Update’s average remaining at $880 per ton ($44.00/cwt). Platts moved their average […]
This analysis breaks down the imported tonnage of six flat rolled products by district of entry and source country. Our intent is to describe in detail what is going on in a company’s immediate neighborhood and thus provide a negotiating advantage for Steel Market Update subscribers. Premium members will find reports here on our website […]
U.S. steel exports in March totaled 868,854 net tons (788,212 metric tons), up 7.9 percent from the month before, but down 8.4 percent from March 2017. Total exports have averaged 800,000-820,000 tons over the last few months. The total March export figure is above the three-month moving average (average of January 2018, February 2018 and […]
Flat rolled and plate steel prices were mixed in what has to be considered yet another quiet week for pricing. Steel buyers have mixed feelings as to where steel prices go from here, with some believing prices have no place to go but up and others looking at the HRC futures market (which is backwardated) […]
SMU’s flat rolled steel Price Momentum Indicator is currently pointing at Neutral meaning sheet steel prices are in transition or have hit a lull. A Neutral reading does not mean flat rolled steel prices will automatically move lower from here just because the previous indication was for higher prices. The injection of the U.S. government […]
Steel production for the week ending May 5 totaled 1,779,000 net tons, a 3.5 percent increase from the same period last year, and up 1.4 percent from the previous week. The mill capability utilization rate for the May 5 week averaged 75.9 percent, up from 74.8 percent the prior week and 73.7 percent the prior […]
Steel production for the week ending May 12 totaled 1,747,000 net tons, a 1.7 percent increase from the same period last year, but down 1.8 percent from the previous week. The mill capability utilization rate for the May 12 week averaged 74.5 percent, down from 75.9 percent the prior week but up from 73.7 percent […]
Total rolled steel product imports in April were the highest since last June and semi-finished imports were the highest since October 2014 as offshore mills hurried to ship steel ahead of the tariffs that were expected to take effect May 1. Total rolled steel product imports in April were up by 17.0 percent from March’s […]
Last week Steel Market Update conducted our early May 2018 flat rolled and plate steel market trends survey. We sent invitations to 640 individuals representing approximately 620 companies mostly located in the United States and Canada. The purpose of our inquiries is to better follow various trends affecting the flat rolled and plate markets. We […]
Flat rolled steel prices continued their mixed ways for about the fourth week in a row. Steel Market Update and Platts both saw benchmark hot rolled as up slightly and the two indexes are now $1 per ton apart in their assessment of the HRC market average. SteelBenchmarker did not report prices this past week. […]
February and its 2.477 million tons of foreign steel imports seems like a long way off, based on the new license data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce earlier this week. According to the license data, April is trending to come in just shy of 4 million net tons (3,879,350 tons). Semi-finished steels are […]
Flat rolled and plate steel prices continue to show signs of stability as the market absorbs the most recent decision on Section 232 exclusions (countries) and awaits decisions about individual product exclusions. Steel Market Update continues to reference our SMU Price Momentum Indicator as being at Neutral, but I want to warn our readers that […]
While some mills claim capacity utilization above 90 percent, the industry overall averaged less than 76 percent in the first four months of the year, according to the weekly raw steel production data reported by the American Iron and Steel Institute. The peak capacity utilization was 78.7 percent in the first week of March. Domestic […]
Total raw steel production for the month of March was 8,084,427 net tons, the highest production level since October 2014 when 8,147,661 tons were produced. The production method breakdown was 5,578,866 tons produced by electric arc furnaces (EAFs) and 2,505,561 tons produced by blast furnaces. March raw steel production was 818,072 tons or 11.3 percent […]
Yet another mixed week as the flat rolled and plate steel markets wait for the government to decide what to do next… It’s tough to be a steel buyer when the laws of supply and demand are no longer in sync with the actual market. Hot rolled prices were mixed although the spread between Steel […]
Our apologies. On Thursday we used inaccurate import license data and the article we wrote was totally incorrect. Here is the corrected version with license data as of Wednesday, April 25. April 2018 licenses are suggesting the month will end with 3.9 million net tons of foreign steel imports. Of those, almost 1 million net […]
“Too many plates spinning right now to try and peg a price direction. The wrong tweet at the wrong time could throw all your planning out the window,” said one manufacturing company to Steel Market Update earlier today, explaining his take on the market. Steel buyers are seeing stability in most products with the possible […]
As a group, flat rolled steel buyers are of the opinion that prices on hot rolled, cold rolled and coated products have plateaued over the near term. However, to a person, the buyers are waiting for May 1st to arrive and then see how President Trump, USTR Robert Lighthizer and the Department of Commerce handle […]
U.S. raw steel production last week was an improvement on the same period last year, but mill capacity utilization remains short of the 80 percent mark desired by the industry. Steel production for the week ending April 21 totaled 1,788,000 net tons, a 3.9 percent increase from the same period last year, and up 0.2 […]
The prices of scrap and iron ore advanced in April, but coking coal and zinc declined. To put the raw materials analysis into perspective, Figure 1 shows the spread between Chicago #1 busheling and hot rolled coil ex works Indiana through April 13, both in dollars per net ton. The spread at $538.50 is now […]
Flat rolled steel prices were once again “mixed” for this past week. Platts reported hot rolled coil prices as being lower, while their cold rolled, galvanized rose and plate remained the same. Steel Market Update saw HRC prices as being up $10 as was our plate pricing. Cold rolled remained the same, while coated products […]
Cleveland Cliffs reported an outstanding performance by its U.S. iron ore segment in first-quarter 2018. Restocking of customer inventory and an early break in the weather favoring vessel shipments drove sales of 1.6 million long tons of pellets. Shipping is expected to increase dramatically to 5.5 million long tons for the second quarter. As a […]
The U.S. Department of Commerce updated their license data for the months of March and April, and we now have data through April 17. Based on the data just released, both March and April appear poised to come in around 3.5 million net tons. The largest importers continue to be the domestic steel mills as […]
Flat rolled steel prices appear to have reached a plateau, at least on a temporary basis, according to steel buyers who reported mill spot pricing to Steel Market Update this week. Don’t let our headline fool you or lull you into complacency–steel mills are firm with their steel price offers and there has been very […]
U.S. raw steel production has leveled off in a range slightly above or below the 1.8 milllion ton level for the past several weeks. Mill capacity utilization remains stubbornly in the mid to upper 70s, despite domestic producers’ desire to top the 80 percent mark. Steel production for the week ending April 14 totaled 1,784,000 […]
U.S. steel exports in February totaled 805,353 net tons (730,605 metric tons), down 3.1 percent from the month before, and down 2.7 percent from February 2017. Total exports have averaged around 820,000-840,000 tons over the last few months. The total February export figure is above the three-month moving average (average of December 2017, January 2018 […]
Flat rolled and plate steel prices were mixed this past week. Benchmark hot rolled price averages ranged from a low of $854 per ton (SteelBenchmarker) to a high of $882 per ton (Platts) with Steel Market Update reporting our average last week as $870 per ton, unchanged from the week prior. Cold rolled averages ranged […]