Just about two-thirds of US states added construction jobs in December, while many job openings remained unfilled, according to the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). AGC said that open positions at the end of December remained high as demand for many types of commercial construction projects remain strong, adding that firms would likely have added […]
US Steel is running all three blast furnaces at its steel mill in Košice, Slovakia, company spokespeople said. “I can confirm that all three blast furnaces have been in operation since the start of this week,” one said in an email to SMU. The Slovakian subsidiary of the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker restarted the No. 1 furnace in […]
Raw steel production by US mills rose for the second consecutive week after falling for four straight weeks, according to data released by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) on Tuesday, Jan. 23. The increase pushed capacity utilization up to just 72.5%, driven by increases in tons in the South and Northeast regions. Domestic […]
US steel export volumes remained relatively flat in November compared to October, according to the latest US Commerce Department data. November’s exports total stood at 697,447 tons vs. 697,399 tons the previous month. October remains the lowest volume export month for 2022. In comparison to recent years, export levels had remained high for the majority of 2022. Of our six monitored […]
We’re less than two weeks away from the Tampa Steel Conference. It’s not too late to register, but you should do it ASAP. The event will be at the Tampa Marriott Water Street hotel on Sunday-Tuesday Feb. 5-7. Approximately 430 people have already registered, which is more than total attendace last year. We expect that number to […]
We’ve seen several sheet price hike announcements from mills over the past couple of months, to the tune of $160 per ton ($8.00 per cwt) since late November. This week alone we’ve seen at minimum Cleveland-Cliffs and ArcelorMittal officially increase spot prices for steel sheet by at least another $50 per ton ($2.50 per cwt). […]
North American auto assemblies declined 13.8% in December, slowing down for the second straight month. Last month’s assembly output was the second-lowest total in 2022 and just 3.4% higher year on year (YoY), according to LMC Automotive data. December finished as the third consecutive month at more than one million units. Though inventories have improved, the […]
Sheet prices continued to inch upward this week as market participants debated whether a third round of price increases from Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. would gain traction. Those who thought the $50-per-ton price hike would stick pointed to higher scrap costs, solid demand, and new capacity still struggling to ramp up. Those who questioned whether the increases […]
Business activity in the state of New York fell in January, reaching its lowest level since the early days of the pandemic, according to data from the Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The New York Fed’s Empire State headline general business conditions index — a gauge of manufacturing activity in the state — plunged from -11.2 […]
Two Democratic senators have asked that imports of downstream grain-oriented electrical steel (GOES) products be hit with Section 232 national security tariffs. Senators Sherrod Brown (D., Ohio) and Bob Casey (D., Pa.) sent a letter to the US Commerce Department on Jan. 12 to address this issue. Section 232 tariffs of 25% on imported steel were […]
The US International Trade Commission (ITC) has voted to remove duties on Brazilian hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil, and plate. Once might be a coincidence. But three times? That’s a trend. The question now: Is this a big-picture shift in US trade policy toward Brazil? Or is it instead more a matter of inside baseball at the […]
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 […]
By now, anyone who works in the steel industry understands how important sustainability is. Steel is the most recycled material in the world, and recycled steel is a prominent ingredient in electric-arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking. Steel Market Update’s final Spotlight of 2022 gets into sustainability with Philip Bell, president of the Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA), […]
The Dodge Momentum Index registered 222.2 in December, up 6.6% from 208.3 in November, according to data and analytics from the Dodge Construction Network. Dodge is the leading index for commercial real estate, using the data of planned nonresidential building projects to track spending in the sector for the next 12 months. For December, the index’s […]
Nucor plans to increase base prices for all new orders of steel sheet by $50 per ton ($2.50 per cwt). The price hike is effective immediately, the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said in a letter to customers on Monday, Jan. 9. “We reserve the right to review and re-quote any offers that are not confirmed with […]
Canadian drilling rig numbers have made a post-holiday rebound, while working rigs in the US declined, according to data from oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The number of oil and gas rigs in operation is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of demand for oil country tubular goods (OCTG), a key […]
Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. posted a net loss in its first quarter of fiscal 2023 on lower demand and lower average selling prices for recycled metals and finished steel products. The Portland, Ore.-based scrap recycler and long steel producer recorded a net loss of $18 million in its fiscal Q1 ended Nov. 30, 2022. That’s […]
Evraz North America (NA) is transitioning to a new general contractor for its rail mill under construction in Pueblo, Colo. “Construction will continue with a new general contractor in place to ensure the overall safety, quality, and timeliness of the project,” Evraz NA SVP David Ferryman said in a statement. “The work is not going […]
Sheet prices entered 2023 moving upward on expectations of higher prime scrap prices, and on a modest uptick in activity as some buyers looked to get ahead of anticipated higher steel prices as well. The gains also came on the heels of a price increase of $50 per ton ($2.50 per cwt) initiated last month […]
The number of active Canadian drilling rigs dropped for the second week in a row, while rigs in the US stayed the same, according to data from oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The number of oil and gas rigs in operation is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of demand for […]
With 2022 now in the past, the door has closed on one of the most volatile years for the aluminum industry. Supply chain disruptions as a residual fallout from Covid-19 and elevated levels of geopolitical risk raised uncertainty throughout the value chain. The shift in import trends has also been a major topic and is […]
Olympic Steel Inc. has acquired Wichita, Kan.-based Metal-Fab Inc. for $131 million. The company said Metal-Fab, which manufactures venting and filtration products for residential, commercial, and industrial applications, will continue to operate under the same name, led by Mark Ohm, president. “It provides us with a solid platform for accelerating growth in two target market […]
Klöckner & Co. announced an agreement to buy Mexican metal supplier National Material of Mexico (NMM) for $340 million. The Duisburg, Germany–based service center said the transaction will be completed through Klöckner & Co.’s U.S. subsidiary, Kloeckner Metals Corp. (KMC). NMM is an independent service center with seven locations throughout Mexico. The company specializes in the […]
Business activity declined in New York state in December, according to firms responding to the December Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The New York Fed’s Empire State headline general business conditions index—a gauge of manufacturing activity in the state—fell sixteen points to -11.2, down 15.7 points from 4.5 in November. In December, 23.1% of respondents reported […]
The spread between hot-rolled coil (HRC) and prime scrap prices is narrowing for the second consecutive month, according to Steel Market Update data. Prices for both products increased in December, following five consecutive months of declines. The latest HRC-prime spread is one of the lowest recorded in more than two years. The spread is now back […]
US apparent steel supply ticked up 3% in October to 8.5 million net tons, according to data from the US Department of Commerce and the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). Recall that apparent supply had fallen to a 19-month low in September—so while levels increased in October, it represents the third-lowest figure recorded in […]
US Steel said hot commissioning is underway, and the first small batch of pig iron was cast at its Gary Works in northwest Indiana. The Pittsburgh-based steelmaker said it has cast several full ladles of hot iron and produced over 1,000 tons of pig iron. This occurred months ahead of schedule, while maintaining a perfect […]
North America could be a bright spot in the global steel industry in a mostly gloomy outlook for 2023, according to a report from Fitch Ratings. The report said that in some markets, “including North America, India, Turkey and Brazil, sentiment remains more positive than our mid-cycle assumptions.” Reasons cited included benefits from protectionist trade […]
The Biden administration sent a proposition to the European Union (EU) Dec. 7 for a potential trade alliance between nations that use lower carbon emissions to produce metals. In October 2021 the US lifted the Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from the EU, which was replaced by the tariff rate quota (TRQ) […]
Liberty Steel USA has raised a $40 million term loan with Eclipse Business Capital to refinance its existing term loan before its maturity in January. The company said that in addition to the new term loan, it has increased existing asset-based lending (ABL) with Eclipse to $150 million from $125 million. This additional liquidity will help the wire rod […]