Contributor: Michael Cowden

Another record-breaking SMU Steel Summit is in the books. Thanks to all of you – attendees, speakers, sponsors, and exhibitors – for making it possible it in what has been an uncertain year for steel.

The big show is here again. SMU Steel Summit begins on Monday. This year, like last year, more than 1,500 people will be joining us. And I couldn’t be more excited to have everyone here in Atlanta.

With SMU Steel Summit starting in just a few days, I decided to go back and do a quick check on where things stand now compared to the week before Summit last year.

Sheet and plate prices were flat or lower again this week on continued concerns about demand and higher production rates among US mills.

Veteran trade attorney Lewis Leibowitz will join SMU for a Community Chat on Wednesday, Aug. 13, at 11 am ET.

Sheet and plate prices were either flat or modestly lower this week on softer demand and increasing domestic capacity.

We’re in the dog days of summer, and the question is whether the market will improve as lead times stretch into September. Your answer to that question might depend on where you are in the supply chain. And producers, it seems to me, are a lot more optimistic than consumers at the moment.

Atlas Holdings has completed its acquisition of Evraz North America (Evraz NA) and its subsidiaries.

ArcelorMittal expects less demand growth across most of the markets it operates in, including the US, because of President Donald Trump’s tariffs. But the Luxembourg-based steelmaker also thinks it stands to benefit from an increasingly regionalized world thanks to investments like the new EAF at its mill in Calvert, Ala.

Sheet prices slipped again this week amid discounting from certain mills and ongoing concerns about demand.

Is this just a severe case of the summer doldrums? Will demand improve in the fall, as it often does? Or has uncertainty around tariffs and the economy created a more lasting impact?

Institute for Supply Management CEO Tom Derry will join SMU for our next Community Chat on Wednesday, July 23, at 11 a.m. ET (10 a.m. CT). You can register here.

Cleveland-Cliffs lost more than $400 million for the third consecutive quarter but predicted results would improve in the second half of the year. And shares of the Cleveland-based steelmaker surged after company executives said during its Q2 earnings call on Monday that they could make billions by courting foreign investors or selling assets.

We have a special addition to the agenda of this year's SMU Steel Summit that I’m excited to announce today. U.S. Steel President and CEO David Burritt will speak on the opening day of the Summit about the partnership between the iconic Pittsburgh-based steelmaker and Nippon Steel.

US sheet and plate prices were flat or lower as reduced import volumes were offset by so-so demand.

Mining metals analyst Timna Tanners has joined Wells Fargo as managing director of equity research, according to a post on her LinkedIn profile.

The difference: The spat with Turkey was a big deal for steel. This time, the 50% reciprocal tariff for Brazil – if it goes into effect as threatened on Aug.1 – hits everything from coffee and to pig iron. It seems almost custom-built to inflict as much pain as possible on Brazil.

President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he would increase the “reciprocal” tariff on imports from Brazil to 50% effective Aug. 1. That could have big implications for pig iron.

Institute for Supply Management CEO Tom Derry will join SMU for our next Community Chat on Wednesday, July 23, at 11 a.m. ET (10 a.m. CT)

Sheet and plate prices slipped this week on so-so demand, sideways scrap prices, and chatter that certain mills were making unsolicited calls looking for tons.

CRU analysts Thais Terzian and Frank Nikolic will be the featured guests on the next SMU Community Chat on Wednesday, July 9, at 11 am ET.

I’m not sure how many different ways I can write that it’s been a quiet market ahead of Independence Day. There are variations on that theme. I’ve heard everything from the ominous “eerily quiet” to "getting better" and even the occasional “blissfully unaware” (because I’m enjoying my vacation).

US mills shipped slightly less steel in May than in April, according to the latest figures from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).

Sheet and plate prices were little changed in the shortened week ahead of Independence Day, according to SMU’s latest check of the market.

CRU analysts Thais Terzian and Frank Nikolic will be the featured guests on the next SMU Community Chat on Wednesday, July 9, at 11 am ET. The live webinar is free for anyone to attend. A recording will be available to SMU subscribers.

Atlas Holdings said it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Evraz North America (Evraz NA). The Greenwich, Conn.-based private equity firm said it expects the deal for the Chicago-based steelmaker to close in the second quarter of 2025 subject to various closing condition.

Maybe some of this uncertainty will get ironed out ahead of Liberation Day tariffs resetting higher rates on July 9. But if I had to place a wager, it would be on more drama and last-minute brinksmanship - whether it comes to the Liberation Day tariffs or the various Section 232s that are in the works.

CRU analysts Thais Terzian and Frank Nikolic will be the featured guests on the next SMU Community Chat on Wednesday, July 9, at 11 am ET.

Prices for steel sheet slipped this week despite Section 232 tariffs remaining at 50% and a US strike on nuclear facilities in Iran over the weekend.

Not many people in the North American steel market had direct US involvement in another Middle East conflict on their bingo card. Prices weren't expected to shoot higher unless something unexpected happened. That unexpected something has now happened. And there is talk of oil at $100 per barrel. What does that mean for steel?