Contributor: Michael Cowden

On the face of it, nothing much changed in the US steel market this week. Lead times continue to extend. Inventories remain lean. And mills can pretty much name their price. Sheet lead times, which extend well into December, remain at the highest levels we’ve seen since 2021. Plate lead times, meanwhile, set a new record. At 11 weeks on average, they’re higher than anything we’ve recorded – including during the boom year of ’21.

Lead times for sheet and plate continued to extend amid a domestic supply squeeze, according to the latest SMU steel market survey data. Average lead times stretch into mid- or late December, and those at some mills now extend into 2027. Lead times for all sheet products except Galvalume stand at their highest point since the post-covid demand snapback in 2021. Lead times for plate are now even higher than their 2021 peak.

US sheet and plate prices continued to march higher this week as a market squeeze that’s been in place for months now showed no signs of letting up. Market participants, some mostly focused on 2027 contract negotiations, said that it was increasingly difficult to even get a quote for spot tonnage from domestic mills, which firmly retain their grip on pricing power. SMU’s hot-rolled (HR) coil price stands at...

Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), will join SMU for a Community Chat webinar on Wednesday, Oct. 28, at 11 a.m. ET. What will we talk about? On the one hand, a steel-intensive data center boom continues to outstrip even the most bullish steel-demand forecasts. On the other hand, some more traditional construction markets are struggling. What happens if the data boom falters?

Domestic mills shipped roughly the same amount of steel in August as they did in July, according to the latest figures from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). US mills shipped 8,220,544 short tons (st) in August, up marginally from 8,219,549 in July, AISI said. But while the month-over-month (m/m) comparison was roughly flat, year-over-year (y/y) comparisons point to a significant increase in domestic shipments.

Every month, SMU polls scrap market participants on a variety of topics—including prices, business conditions, and what they think the future holds. We received the data and comments below last week, before the October market had entirely settled. And as it turns out, survey respondents mostly got it right. Broadly speaking, all survey respondents said demand was stable (56%) or improving (44%). None reported a decline in demand. We haven't seen this many people reporting improving demand since February.

If you’re a Seinfeld fan, you probably remember the classic episode about “The Soup Nazi.” I think there might be some parallels between that clip and the tone of 2027 contract negotiations between domestic mills and steel buyers.

Nucor plans to invest $105 million to expand production at its utility towers and structures plant in Crawfordsville, Ind.

SMU’s latest steel market survey is out, and it paints a picture of a market we’re all familiar with now: long lead times, mills firmly in control of pricing, and an expectation that US sheet prices will remain stronger for longer, despite increased interest in imports.

U.S. Steel on Wednesday proposed a new, five-year labor contract to the United Steelworkers (USW) union – one that would run from Sept. 1, 2026, to Sept. 1, 2031, but the USW called the offer a "disappointment."

Sheet and plate prices continued to inch higher on a combination of scarce spot tons, long lead times, lean inventories, and stable demand.

A one-month extension of the terms of the current four-year contracts between the USW and the two steelmakers (which was initially set to lapse on Sept. 1) expires on Oct. 1.

Sheet and plate prices continued to tick mostly higher this week amid a supply squeeze that shows no signs of loosening its grip on the US market.

The United Steelworkers (USW) union plans to extend its current labor contract with U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs by 48-hours on a rolling basis, the union told SMU on Monday.

The United Steelworkers (USW) union on Sunday said it remained far apart from U.S. Steel over the terms of a new labor contract. Meanwhile, the deadline for negotiating a new contract inches closer.

The rally in steel sheet prices is officially a year old. We haven’t seen a yearlong price rally since 2021, when a snapback in demand following the early days of the pandemic resulted in one of the biggest steel market booms since World War II.

Nucor Corp. expects significantly higher earnings in the third quarter thanks to higher selling prices and stable sales volumes.

Sheet and plate prices remained on an upward trek over the last week as concerns about supply shortages continued to ripple across the market, industry sources said.

If the question is, “Brother, can you spare a spot ton?” The answer from many mills might be “No.” Or perhaps, in the case of hot-rolled (HR) coil, “Do you have $1,300 per ton?”

Sheet and plate prices continue to push higher on increasingly tight supplies and solid demand, market participants said. The domestic market remains characterized by both limited spot availability and limited contract availability. Buyers continue to report having difficulty finding spot material and being held below their contract maximums and sometimes to their contract minimums.

The retaliatory measures—which include 50% tariffs on US steel and aluminum—came after trade talks between Washington and Ottawa collapsed last month.

If you’re looking for a deal on steel, this last week wasn’t the one to find one. (Nor was the week before that. Or the week before that.) Meanwhile, contract negotiations are heating up in one of the tightest markets since at least 2021. I've heard discounts will be lower, min-max ranges will be tighter, and there will be less freight equalization and waiving extras.

U.S. Steel has restarted the No. 14 blast furnace at its Gary Works in northwest Indiana after a $350 million reline.

Flat-rolled steel prices inched higher again this week, continuing a trend that has characterized the market for most of this year. SMU’s hot-rolled (HR) coil price now stands at...

The 45-day outage will now take place in September instead of August, as initially planned, JSW Steel CEO Robert Simon said. 

The United Steelworkers (USW) union, U.S. Steel, and Cleveland-Cliffs on Monday agreed to extend the terms of their current labor contracts by 30 days. The current basic labor agreements between the USW and the two steelmakers had been scheduled to expire at 12:01 a.m. ET on Sept. 1. The extension allows the USW and the companies to continue negotiations. It also averts the immediate threat of a strike or lockout in a steel market already characterized by historically tight supplies.

The United Steelworkers (USW) union and Cleveland-Cliffs remain at an impasse on key issues, the union said in an update to members on Friday.

The United Steelworkers (USW) union said it remains “very far apart” with U.S. Steel on the terms of a new labor contract. 

First, a big thank you to everyone who attended SMU Steel Summit this week and the inaugural AMU Aluminum Summit as well. I’m not going to crow too much about it being another record year in terms of attendance. But it was—and you made that possible. Also, it’s always great to see the entire steel […]

The United Steelworkers (USW) union remains “far apart” from U.S. Steel on issues that matter most to its members. Those top issues are health care, wages, retirement, and commitments to invest in union-represented facilities.