Steel imports into the U.S. in March, totaling 2.26 million tons, were down by 7 percent from the prior month led by a sharp decline in semi-finished imports, according to final Census data from the Department of Commerce. It does not appear the downtrend is continuing, however. Based on the latest license data, imports totaled […]
Steel buyers are still trying to get a sense for what is driving this market and market pricing. We are seeing weakness in prices even though foreign steel imports are down, import price offers are higher than domestic steel prices and demand is pretty good for most of the market segments using sheet or plate […]
This comment from a large national service center says it all: “Prices are all over the place. It’s as if the discipline is lost. Different mills all seem to have some sort of hole or gap they’re trying to fill causing pricing heartburn.” Steel Market Update saw further erosion in spot prices on flat rolled […]
The following calculation is used by Steel Market Update to identify the theoretical spread between foreign hot rolled steel prices (delivered to U.S. ports) and domestic hot rolled coil prices (FOB domestic mills). We want our readers to be aware that this is only a “theoretical” calculation as freight costs, trader margin and other costs […]
U.S. steel exports in February totaled 599,430 net tons (543,794 metric tons), down 5.8 percent from January and down 25.6 percent from levels one year ago. The total February export figure is above the three-month moving average (3MMA, average of December 2018, January 2019, and February 2019) but below the 12-month moving average (12MMA, average […]
The U.S. active rotary rig count, an indicator of oil country tubular goods demand, decreased this week, according to oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The number of active U.S. rigs fell by 21 to 991, with oil rigs down 20 and gas rigs down 1. Compared to this time last year, the 991 count is […]
Final February steel import data was recently released by the U.S. Department of Commerce, putting the total monthly import level at 2.4 million net tons, down 30.1 percent compared to January’s 3.5 million ton high. The February figure is below both the three-month moving average (3MMA) and the 12-month moving average (12MMA). When removing the […]
Steel buyers continue to express concerns about hot rolled, cold rolled and plate steels. We have seen weakness in those products over the past week to two weeks. Galvanized and Galvalume have had more staying power, however buyers are not rushing to fill their inventories at today’s pricing. There is a wait-and-see attitude regarding future […]
Flat rolled steel prices saw a little more weakening this week, and steel buyers are concerned that more erosion in prices could be coming in the next few months. Here is how we see prices this week: Hot Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $640-$700 per ton ($32.00/cwt-$35.00/cwt) with an average of $670 per ton […]
Updated steel import license data was released Tuesday evening, reporting new March license data up slightly over last week to 2.79 million tons, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. These figures would be above the three-month moving average (3MMA, through final January data), but below the 12-month moving average (12MMA). When removing the semi-finished […]
Total raw steel production for the month of February fell to 7,667,664 net tons, reports the American Iron and Steel Institute in Washington. This is the lowest monthly production level seen since April 2018 when it was 7,630,135 tons. Broken down by production method, 5,305,123 tons (69.2 percent) were produced by electric arc furnaces (EAFs) […]
The following calculation is used by Steel Market Update to identify the theoretical spread between foreign hot rolled steel prices (delivered to U.S. ports) and domestic hot rolled coil prices (FOB domestic mills). We want our readers to be aware that this is only a “theoretical” calculation as freight costs, trader margin and other costs […]
We saw weakness in a number of the products we index this week. We are not seeing a collapse of the market, and as we discuss in another article in tonight’s issue, there are regional and product differences. The various products are not working in concert right now. We moved our Price Momentum Indicators on […]
We saw weakness in a number of the products we index this week. We are not seeing a collapse of the market, and as we discuss in another article in tonight’s issue, there are regional and product differences. The various products are not working in concert right now. We moved our Price Momentum Indicators on […]
The U.S. Department of Commerce released updated import license data on Tuesday evening, with new March license estimates up slightly to 2.76 million tons. These latest figures would be above the three-month moving average (3MMA, through final January data), but below the 12-month moving average (12MMA). When removing the semi-finished (mostly slabs) licenses from the […]
The U.S. Department of Commerce released license data for foreign steel coming into the United States. Based on the data received and reported through April 2, March imports are expected to come in slightly higher than February at 2.6-2.7 million net tons. When removing the semi-finished (mostly slabs) licenses from the data, the finished steel […]
January apparent steel supply was calculated at 9,902,993 net tons, according to data released late last week. Apparent steel supply is determined by adding domestic steel shipments and finished U.S. steel imports, then subtracting total U.S. steel exports. This is the highest level seen since March 2018 when apparent supply was 9,935,479 tons. January apparent […]
The U.S. active rotary rig count, an indicator of oil country tubular goods demand, increased this week, according to oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The number of active U.S. rigs rose by 19 to 1,025, with oil rigs up 15 and gas rigs up 4. Compared to this time last year, the 1,025 count is […]
Heating and cooling equipment shipments totaled 1.49 million units in February, up 0.7 percent compared to one year ago, according to data recently released by the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). Excluding the 5.1 percent slip last September, total monthly equipment shipments on a year-over-year basis have increased every month since November 2016. Residential […]
U.S. steel exports in January totaled 636,566 net tons (577,484 metric tons), up 22.6 percent from December, but down 23.4 percent from levels one year ago. Although up over the previous month, keep in mind that total exports for December 2018 were at a 16+ year low. The total January export figure is above the […]
The following calculation is used by Steel Market Update to identify the theoretical spread between foreign hot rolled steel prices (delivered to U.S. ports) and domestic hot rolled coil prices (FOB domestic mills). We want our readers to be aware that this is only a “theoretical” calculation as freight costs, trader margin and other costs […]
Looking back at the key indicators for the month of March, steel prices saw a modest increase following mill price increase announcements in January and February. The benchmark price for hot rolled averaged $698 per ton, according to SMU data, up $16 from February, but flat with the price in January. Prices for cold rolled […]
April saw steel prices lose momentum as hot rolled dipped to an average of $662, cold rolled to $803 and galvanized G90 to less than $900 per ton. Even plate, which has been in tight supply, has now moderated to around $964 per ton from prices near or above $1,000 earlier in the year. Steel […]
Since hitting an eight-year low in December of just 1,893,568 tons, imports of steel into the United States have been up and down, according to Commerce Department data. Final January imports jumped to 3,478,865 net tons, up 83.7 percent over December—a nearly 1.6 million ton increase. Then in February, based on license data for the […]
Hot rolled is the weakest product and our HRC average priced dropped due to lower prices collected out of two minimills. We understand one mill is offering even lower numbers for large tonnage, but we did not include that in our numbers for this evening as we want to speak directly with the mill to […]
Hot rolled prices were up $5 per ton this past week to $690 per ton. The averages continue to be negatively impacted by a couple of aggressive mills. We saw a little erosion on cold rolled and the lower end of the galvanized range. Galvalume was unchanged. Plate steel prices saw the gains measured last […]
Over the next couple of years there will be approximately 20 million tons of capacity built in North America. Most of us focus on the capacity being built by Nucor, Steel Dynamics, JSW USA and others. What is overlooked is the capacity being built just south of the U.S. border in Mexico. In an effort […]
The U.S. active rotary rig count, an indicator of oil country tubular goods demand, decreased this week, according to oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The number of active U.S. rigs fell by 10 to 1,016, with oil rigs down 9 and gas rigs down 1. Compared to this time last year, the 1,016 count is […]
Flat rolled and plate steel prices saw relatively little movement over the past week. Steel Market Update leaves its hot rolled and galvanized prices unchanged, with small declines reported in cold rolled, Galvalume and plate. Here is how we see prices this week: Hot Rolled Coil: SMU price range is $690-$720 per ton ($34.50/cwt-$36.00/cwt) with […]
Total heating and cooling equipment shipments in January rose 6.6 percent compared to one year ago, according to data recently released by the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). Excluding the 5.1 percent slip last September, total monthly equipment shipments on a year-over-year basis have increased every month since November 2016. Residential and commercial storage […]