US light-vehicle sales posted solid growth in June, according to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and sales are expected to continue pushing upward. Light-vehicle sales reached a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 15.7 million units in June. Showing 4% month-over-month growth, this beat previous forecasts. June’s sales pushed total second-quarter sales […]
US steel imports climbed in June to the highest monthly level over the past 12 months, based on June import license data compiled by the US Department of Commerce. Import license applications reached 2,803,597 net tons in June, according to Commerce’s license count as of July 5. This was a 20.7% spike from the month […]
Leeco Steel has acquired Texas plate processor Titan Steel. Titan Steel, based in Alvarado, Texas, specializes in plasma and oxy-fuel cutting and machining of steel plate. The acquisition will allow Leeco to produce parts that require precision machining and milling. The purchase closed on June 30. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. As of […]
Ternium and Tenaris have upped their stake in Brazilian steelmaker Usinas Siderúrgicas de Minas Gerais S.A. (Usiminas). Ternium’s Brazilian subsidiary Confab Industrial S.A., Ternium Investments, and Ternium Argentina, collectively known as the T/T group within the controlling group of Usiminas, closed on a previously announced acquisition of 68.7 million ordinary shares of Usiminas. The shares […]
Lead times were broadly stable this week, with sheet products rising modestly and plate unchanged from SMU’s market check two weeks ago. More meaningful movements in lead times should be seen in the coming weeks as buyers return to the market after the Fourth of July holiday. Should the mills’ recent sheet price hikes take […]
Port workers on Canada’s West Coast are on strike, and ports are already feeling the impact of the slowdown in the movement of goods. More than 7,400 workers represented by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada (ILWU Canada) took to the picket lines starting on July 1 after failing to reach a new labor […]
With the US aluminum industry at a critical juncture, a new report is highlighting ways the Biden administration can use the Global Arrangement for Sustainable Steel and Aluminum (GASSA) to help the struggling domestic industry. Recall CRU’s aluminum analysts have previously shared with SMU the nightmare US aluminum smelters have been facing when it comes […]
The US Department of Commerce recently updated antidumping and countervailing duty rates on a number of different welded pipe and tube products. An SMU review of the US government’s Federal Register show the following changes by Commerce in multiple administrative reviews: Welded Line Pipe from South Korea Considering the one-year period ended Nov. 30, 2021, […]
As sheet prices continued to decline throughout June, the spread between hot-rolled coil (HRC) and galvanized coil base prices also shrank further. Recall that at the end of May, the galvanized premium over hot-rolled coil (HRC) averaged $175 per ton. As of this week, that premium had fallen to $150 per ton. Let’s look at […]
After failing to reach a new collective labor agreement, port workers on Canada’s West Coast are set to strike as of July 1. Bargaining talks between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada (ILWU Canada) and the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA), ongoing since February, have now stalled. ILWU Canada workers have continued to […]
China’s recent reopening, coupled with increased government spending on infrastructure, has led Fitch Ratings to upgrade the outlook for the global steel sector from deteriorating to neutral. The New York-based ratings agency revised China’s steel sector outlook to neutral as well, according to a research note sent to SMU. China’s “stronger-than-expected infrastructure growth and a […]
China’s recent reopening, coupled with increased government spending on infrastructure, has led Fitch Ratings to upgrade the outlook for the global steel sector from deteriorating to neutral. The New York-based ratings agency revised China’s steel sector outlook to neutral as well, according to a research note sent to SMU. China’s “stronger-than-expected infrastructure growth and a […]
While a lack of inventory is constraining existing-home sales in the US, it’s proving a boon for sales of new homes. Existing-Home Sales Constricted by the lack of inventory, existing-home sales rose just slightly in May, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Sales of existing homes reached a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) […]
In May’s preliminary count, total US steel imports came in below import licenses tallied for the month. At the same time, however, flat-rolled steel imports came in higher than licenses originally suggested, according to the latest data from the International Trade Administration’s (ITA’s) steel import monitor. SMU’s previous analysis of May import data showed 2,395,039 […]
Global crude steel output during the month of May was flat from April but down almost 5% from the same month last year, according to the most recent data from the World Steel Association (worldsteel). Monthly production dipped in China while rising in the rest of the world (RoW). May’s steel production totaled 161.6 million […]
With hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices falling faster than plate pricing, the price spread between the two flat-rolled products moved this week to its highest level since February. The $1,955-per-net-ton all-time high of average HRC prices was reached in September 2021. Prices then turned downward before jumping up again in March and April 2022, affected by […]
Algoma Steel anticipates increasing its plate production in the third calendar quarter of this year. Phase two of the Canadian steelmaker’s plate mill modernization project continues, CEO Michael Garcia said on the company’s fiscal fourth-quarter of 2023 earnings call with analysts on Thursday, June 22. The second phase had initially been expected to be finished […]
The US Department of Energy has awarded 10 projects with a combined $31.9 million in funding to help decarbonize the iron and steel industry. Through its Low Emissions Steel Manufacturing Research Program, the DOE funding will focus on advancements enabling decarbonization in both ore-based and scrap-based steelmaking, it said. Projects that convert existing operations to […]
Positive structural trends in the North American market are supporting strong earnings results for Commercial Metals Co. The Irving, Texas-based longs producer and metals recycler reported lower fiscal third-quarter sales and earnings compared to levels seen in the year-ago quarter during the 2022 earnings boom, but its results remain strong, said CEO Barbara Smith. “CMC […]
In SMU’s market check this week, lead times for sheet and plate pulled back to some of the shortest times seen in several months. To see lead times this short, we have to go back to March for plate, January for galvanized sheet, and December for hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and Galvalume sheet. With mills pushing for […]
In a good sign for the construction markets, architectural firms saw a rebound in business conditions in May after experiencing a softer April. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) and Deltek reported a May reading of 51.0 in the Architecture Billings Index (ABI). This was a rise from the previous month’s reading of 48.5 and […]
Ternium announced this week that its new slab mill will be built in Pesquería, Nuevo León, Mexico. The Luxembourg-based Latin American steelmaker had said earlier this year it would build an electric-arc furnace (EAF) and direct-reduced iron (DRI) facility in North America. Brownsville, Texas, had been rumored to be in the running for the new […]
Overall housing starts hit a 13-month high in May as construction of both single-family and multi-family homes spiked. Total housing starts were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 1.631 million units in May. This was a 22% rise from the month prior and a 6% increase year-on-year (YoY). May’s SAAR of single-family housing […]
In good news for the movement of goods on the West Coast, a tentative labor agreement has been reached between the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU). The new, six-year contract covers more than 22,000 ILWU dock workers represented at 29 West Coast ports. Details of the tentative agreement, which […]
The US Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) is updating the antidumping duties on carbon and alloy cut-to-length steel plate imported from Belgium. In an administrative review of the AD duties, the ITA is considering the one-year period ended April 30, 2022. In its preliminary ruling, the agency set the weighted-average dumping margin at […]
Decarbonization in the steel industry is fueling growth in orders for the SMS group. The Düsseldorf, Germany-based metals technology and equipment provider reported a year-on-year (YoY) improvement in its 2022 results, with sales, order intake, order backlog, and earnings before taxes all rising significantly. Order intake grew by nearly a third to €4.612 billion ($5.04 billion) […]
With the 2023 SMU Steel Summit quickly approaching, SMU is in full-blown planning mode. Our preparations have me reflecting on last year’s event and what I personally can do to better take full advantage of all the opportunities this year’s event will bring. (Note: CRU and SMU are hosting a free pre-conference webinar on Tuesday, […]
Nucor Corp. said its second-quarter earnings should beat those of the prior quarter on strength in all its business segments. The steelmaker expects its Q2 earnings to be in the range of $5.45 to $5.55 per diluted share. Although down from the $9.67 per share posted in Q2 last year, it’s an improvement upon Q1 […]
The US Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) is updating the antidumping duties on hot-rolled steel flats from South Korea. In an administrative review of the one-year period ended Sept. 30, 2022, the ITA set preliminary dumping margins of 0% for Hyundai Steel, Posco, and 45 other Korean companies not selected for individual examination. […]
The forest fires raging in Canada caused rail interruptions for Champion Iron last week. With the fires now subsiding in the area, the company reports a resumption in rail services between its Bloom Lake mine and the port of Sept-Îles on the Gulf of St. Lawrence in Quebec. Mining activities continued at Bloom Lake while […]