Market participants have sharply different views of which way prices will go over the next three months – but whichever camp you’re in, futures are your friend, according to one expert on the matter. Futures markets have seen steep selloffs in recent trading sessions, moves indicating that some industry participants think prices have peaked and are […]
U.S. Steel’s Midwest Plant is back up and running after operations were temporarily halted because of discolored wastewater, a company spokeswoman said. The Portage, Ind., finishing operation – part of U.S. Steel’s Gary Works in northwest Indiana – had been down for about a day, the spokeswoman told SMU on Wednesday afternoon. Midwest Plant typically discharges treated […]
Price dynamics in the steel market are starting to resemble an inverted yield curve, and market participants should treat the situation with appropriate caution. Plate mills and tube producers have announced significant price increases: $75 for tubular products ($3.75 per cwt), $80 per ton for plate and as much as $240 per ton for quenched and […]
At least two domestic pipe and tube mills have announced higher prices on the heels of higher hot-rolled coil costs, market participants said. Atlas Tube in a leading move said it was raising prices by at least $75 per ton ($3.75 per ton) for mechanical tubing, hollow structural sections (HSS) and piling products. The pipe-and-tube price […]
U.S. Steel has temporarily halted operations at its Midwest Plant because of discolored wastewater discharged from its Portage, Ind., finishing facility. “The Midwest Plant was shut down as a precaution, and we continue to coordinate with agencies to collect additional samples to monitor the situation,” a company spokeswoman said in an email to Steel Market […]
Evraz North America (NA) has followed other domestic mills in raising prices for steel plate. The increases are effective immediately for all new orders, the Chicago-based steelmaker, a subsidiary of London-based Evraz Plc, said in a letter to customers dated Monday, Sept. 27. Evraz NA is increasing transactions by at least $80 per ton ($4 […]
The week ahead could be pivotal for Section 232, infrastructure spending and the U.S. pivot toward Asia – all of which are increasingly interlinked, according to one policy expert. The Biden administration wants to ease or lift Section 232 tariffs on the European Union as part of efforts to form a broader coalition against China on […]
SSAB Americas has followed competitor Nucor in raising prices for steel plate by at least $80-200 per ton ($4-10 per cwt). The price hike is effective immediately for all new spot orders, the Mobile, Ala.-based steelmaker said in letters to customers on Friday, Sept. 24 The increase of $80 per ton (Canadian $100 per ton) applies […]
A lot has been written about how a severe shortage of prime scrap could be the lasting result of the widespread shift to electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking. I’d like to take a minute to point out that tri-state area around Pittsburgh, which Nucor is considering for its $2.7 billion, three-million-tpy EAF sheet mill mill, […]
It’s far too early to say that the automotive sector – and the steelmakers who supply it – are out of the woods when it comes to the global chip shortage. But for the first time in weeks, General Motors and several other automakers with North American operations have announced no additional downtime or have […]
A Pennsylvania state senator wants the Keystone State’s governor to work with him to land Nucor and U.S. Steel’s new, multibillion-dollar sheet mills in the western part of the state. Sen. Joe Pittman, a Republican, wants to meet with Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, in hopes of attracting the electric arc furnace (EAF) mill projects – […]
Nucor, in a leading move, announced that it was increasing plate prices along with the opening of its November order book. The price hike is $80 per ton ($4/cwt) for A36 plate and normalized product, and it is $200 per ton ($10/cwt) for quenched-and-tempered material. The increase – announced on Wednesday, Sept. 22 – marks at […]
If you feel a chill in the air, it’s not just the first day of fall and cooler weather coming. We’ve noticed a cooling in market conditions – and it’s backed up by our survey results (which are colorful like fall leaves). Let’s not talk about prices, at least not directly. Let’s talk about lead times, […]
Nucor plans to build a new, $100 million melt shop at one of its bar mills in the western United States. The melt shop is expected to have capacity of 600,000 tons per year and is slated to start up in 2024, the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said. It is also anticipated to create 140 new, full-time […]
Nucor has enough raw material to supply its planned $2.7 billion, 3-million tpy sheet mill, but is exploring new technologies that might help it further reduce carbon emissions. The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker is eyeing a range of options – including increased use of shredded scrap in its sheet mills’ electric-arc furnaces (EAFs), “green” pig iron […]
Nucor plans to build a new, $2.7 billion electric-arc furnace (EAF) sheet mill with annual capacity of three million tons per year in either Ohio, Pennsylvania or West Virginia. The facility is aimed at customers in the Midwest and Northeast as well as at the automotive industry, the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said. “These important markets […]
Olympic Steel Inc. has sold its Detroit operations to Canadian flat-rolled metal processor and distributor Venture Steel Inc. for $58.4 million in cash. The Cleveland-based service center said the final sale price would be higher once working capital adjustments were taken into account. The deal will allow Olympic to reduce debt, give it more flexibility […]
NLMK USA has again sued the U.S. government over Section 232 and wants at least $130 million awarded to it for tariffs it claims were “wrongfully extracted” by the Commerce Department. The steelmaker and slab converter – a subsidiary of Russia’s Novolipetsk Steel – also claims that “secret,” undocumented and “off-record” meetings and communications between Commerce and […]
General Motors has extended downtime at some of its assembly plants into mid to late October because of ongoing parts and semiconductor shortages. “Although the situation remains complex and very fluid, GM continues to prioritize full-size truck production, which remains in high demand,” a spokesman for the Detroit-based automaker said. Here is where things stand […]
U.S. Steel plans to build a new, $3 billion minimill with capacity of three million tons per year in the United States. The new mill will sport two electric-arc furnaces (EAFs) as well as “differentiated” steelmaking and finishing technology, the company said in a press release on Thursday, Sept. 16. Construction is expected to begin […]
Hot-rolled coil prices fell modestly this week for the first time in more than a year, lead times slipped below nine weeks for the first time since mid-April, and inventories continue to inch upward. Everyone is tired of hearing about a “tipping point” to this “unprecedented” market. But how else do you interpret this? Imports, […]
Nucor predicts that its third quarter earnings will be the highest in its history – surpassing a previous highwater market set in the second quarter. The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker forecast third quarter earnings of $7.30-7.40 per diluted share, up from $5.04 per diluted share int the second quarter in guidance released on Thursday. And the […]
Tonnage moved across the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway has risen significantly thanks to a strong showing from vessels carrying iron ore and steel. Total cargo stood at 22.8 million tons (20.7 million metric tonnes) through the end of August – the midpoint of the Great Lakes shipping season – up more than 5% from 21.7 […]
Port Houston expects to resume normal operations today after being briefly closed ahead of Hurricane Nicholas. Nicholas has since weakened into a tropical storm. But port operations were closed on Tuesday because of the storm and because of “widespread power outages,” Port Houston said on Twitter. “The safety of our team members and partners is […]
Nucor’s direct-reduced iron (DRI) plant in Covent, La., remains down after being pre-emptively idled ahead of Hurricane Ida last month. The reason: the storm resulted in a barge shortage on the Mississippi River, a Nucor spokeswoman said. “We are prepared to resume operations as soon as additional barges are available,” she said. The Charlotte, N.C.-based […]
NLMK USA’s operations in western Pennsylvania have secured enough liquid hydrogen (H2) to avert a shortage caused by Hurricane Ida, the company said. The steelmaker was notified after the storm ripped through the Gulf Coast earlier this month that a hydrogen supplier might not be able to meet its commitments. There were initial fears that […]
The first rule of predicting steel prices in 2021 is you don’t predict steel prices. I broke that rule last month when I called a peak. I still think I was right about that. But timing is everything. And when exactly we hit that peak remains a matter of debate. Some market participants think we’re […]
Semiconductor and related parts shortages continue to chip away at North American auto production – with Toyota alone slashing as many as 250,000 vehicles from production schedules over just three months. The list of automakers cutting back production includes other big names such as Stellantis as well as smaller automakers such as Subaru, which operates a […]
General Motors will resume production at some assembly plants next week, but is extending downtime at others into October because of the continued global chip shortage. “All of GM’s full-size truck and full-size SUV plants in North America will be running full production next week,” a company spokesman told SMU on Thursday, Sept. 9. The […]
Lobbying groups for U.S. steel mills and the United Steelworkers (USW) union want trade restraints placed on the EU to prevent potential “import surges” from the region. The call – from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), the Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA) and the United Steelworkers union (USW) – comes even as the U.S. and the […]