By CRU Senior Analyst Helen O’Cleary, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor The automotive industry accounts for approximately 10% of end-use sector zinc demand, in the form of galvanized steel sheet, die castings and oxide. Even before the pandemic, vehicle output and sales in some of the major producing countries were being constrained by new […]
By Greg Wittbecker, Advisor, CRU Analysis Over the past few months, we have seen a number of short-term strike actions around North America: a Montreal four-day strike in May and the Charleston International Longshoremen Association (ILA) filing strike notices at the same time. While both industrial actions have not resulted in extended work stoppages, they […]
By Greg Wittbecker, Advisor, CRU Analysis The $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill promises to deliver about $550 million in actual new investment. The breakdown of that investment looks as follow. Aluminum and steel have superior sustainability advantages and should exploit them. Clearly, the steel industry is cheering the passage as much as the aluminum industry. Both […]
Olympic Steel reported record sales and the most profitable quarter in company history. The achievement in the service center’s second quarter was bolstered by exceptional market conditions and historically high metal prices, the company said. Driven by higher pricing, Olympic set a sales record for the second consecutive quarter, posting net sales of $556 million […]
Olympic Steel announced record financial results for the quarter ended Sept. 30. “Our third-quarter performance was the strongest quarter in company history. And in fact, it was better than all but three full years in Olympic Steel’s history. Net sales totaled $668 million. Net income was $44.5 million and adjusted EBITDA was $70.5 million, all […]
Ryerson recorded its best quarterly profits since 2008 in the second quarter and expects the good times to continue into the third. “We’re not declaring an end to cyclicality in our industry, but noting strong secular growth underpinnings that have been supressed for a long time,” Ryerson President and CEO Eddie Lehner said during a […]
Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. has agreed to purchase Merfish United, adding a master distributor of tubular building products to the service center’s already extensive portfolio of companies. Terms of the deal, which is expected to close within 60 days, were not disclosed. Reliance will acquire Merfish from One Equity Partners, a middle market private […]
The United States and the European Union aim to resolve their differences around Section 232 tariffs on the EU by Nov. 1, an EU official said. “On the U.S. Section 232, both sides confirmed readiness to find a solution by 1 November,” the EU official told Steel Market Update (SMU). “In terms of progress, both […]
By Greg Wittbecker, Advisor, CRU Analysis Workers walked out of Rio Tinto’s Kitimat, British Columbia, smelter on Sunday, July 25, after failing to secure a new contract. The union voted 100% in favor of the strike. This smelter was operating at 383,000 metric tons/year. Some familiar themes are at the center of the labor dispute. […]
Steel prices continued to climb through the month of July, now the 11th consecutive month prices have increased. Hot-rolled steel prices increased an average of $30 per ton ($1.50 per cwt) each week, with the SMU index averaging $1,860 per ton ($93 per cwt) as of last Tuesday. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator has remained unchanged since the […]
Prices for four of the seven steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis increased from June to July, with all products following large gains in previous months. Over the last 30 days, coking coal prices increased 16% and busheling scrap prices rose 5%. Zinc and aluminum prices increased less than 1%, while shredded scrap remained flat and pig […]
ArcelorMittal continues to forge ahead with major expansions at its North American operations on the heels of its best second-quarter profits since 2008. The multinational steelmaker recorded net income of $4 billion in the second quarter of 2021 after losing $559 million in the same quarter last year on sales that increased 76.2% to $19.3 […]
Construction employment declined or stagnated in 101 metro areas between February 2020, the last month before the pandemic, and last month, reported the Associated General Contractors of America in its latest analysis of government data. Labor shortages and supply chain challenges have kept many firms from adding workers in various parts of the country, said […]
By Greg Wittbecker, Advisor, CRU Analysis U.S. Representative Scott Peters (D-CA) and U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) unveiled their FAIR Transition and Competition Act of 2021 on July 19. The stated objectives of the bill were: • Recognize the costs incurred by U.S. companies in producing cleaner products due to emissions-related laws and regulations • […]
Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co.’s sales soared to a record of $3.42 billion in the second quarter on shipments of 1.424 million tons. Sales were up 20.4% from the previous quarter and up 69.3% from the same period last year. The record-setting results for the largest service center in North America were due primarily to the […]
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) kicked off steel earnings season by posting record second-quarter sales and record profits on ballooning metal spreads. And the Fort Wayne, Ind.-based electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaker anticipates another record performance in the third quarter as well as strong demand into 2022. “We remain confident that macroeconomic and market conditions are […]
Producer prices continue to rise into the summer months showing no signs of slowing down. The index and subcategories for final demand have not only recovered from the collapse seen at the onset of COVID-19 but have now surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Since the repeated decreases from February through April of 2020, the composite Producer Price […]
Unprecedented price increases for a wide range of goods and services used in construction pushed up contractors’ costs by a devastating 26.3% from June 2020 to June 2021, according to an analysis of government data by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials cautioned that rising materials prices are making it difficult for many […]
NLMK USA sales surged in the second quarter on strong demand and increased slab supplies from its parent company in Russia. The U.S. subsidiary of Lipetsk, Russia-based NLMK Group recorded flat-rolled steel sales volumes of 502,000 metric tonnes in the first quarter. That’s up 17% from 431,000 tonnes in the first quarter and up 52% […]
You may be tired of reading about it, but there is no ignoring the question: When will hot rolled coil prices finally peak? So many livelihoods depend on the answer. Unfortunately, Steel Market Update survey data clearly shows that no one knows. Roughly one-third of those polled this week believe steel prices will have peaked […]
You may be tired of reading about it, but there is no ignoring the question: When will hot rolled coil prices finally peak? So many livelihoods depend on the answer. Unfortunately, Steel Market Update steel survey data clearly shows that no one knows. Roughly one-third of those polled this week believe hot rolled steel prices […]
Steel prices rose even higher through the month of June, now the 10th consecutive month prices have increased. Hot rolled steel prices increased an average of $30 per ton each week, reaching $1,770 per ton in SMU’s latest check of the market. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator has remained unchanged since the August 2020 adjustment […]
ArcelorMittal wants to be carbon neutral by 2050, but reaching that goal will hinge on developing new ways to take fossil fuels – namely, coal and natural gas – out of the steelmaking process, a company executive said. It will also require that key technologies – carbon capture and storage (CCS), biofuels and other renewable […]
William K. Sales Jr., Reliance Steel & Aluminum’s executive vice president of operations, will retire in January 2022. In the meantime, Sales will work as a special advisor to the metals service center – North America’s largest – in a transition effective from Thursday, July 1. “On behalf of the entire Reliance team, I would […]
Editor’s note: Steel Market Update is please to share this Premium content with Executive members. For information on how to upgrade to a Premium-level subscription, email Info@SteelMarketUpdate.com. Prices for all but one of the steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis increased from May to June, with most products following large gains seen in […]
By Michael Marley The mini sheet mills face a maxi problem, namely no additional supplies of prompt industrial scrap to feed their growing appetites for that raw material. As they move ahead with planned expansions of existing facilities and the construction of greenfield plants, electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmakers may be forced to rely on additional […]
Readers asked me to discuss Section 232 and its possible future. Steel and aluminum tariffs have been around since 2018, not to mention other investigations on components of electric transformers made with electrical steel, autos and auto parts, and vanadium. I think that, under applicable law, certain of these cases have been resolved. I explain here […]
Last Tuesday, the Court of International Trade issued a major opinion in the massive litigation over China tariffs. As I’ve written before, the imposition of tariffs on more than $200 billion of imports per year from China has prompted a slew of lawsuits (more than 3,600 so far, including 6,500 separate plaintiffs), which could find […]
The Biden administration took office not only in the midst of a pandemic, but a global rethink of economic opportunity and outcomes. It’s one reason that global institutions, such as the WTO and the International Monetary Fund, are suffering from a lack of respect and influence, not only among general populations but opinion leaders and […]
Let’s talk about lead times. Because the results from our latest survey caught my attention. This is the first time in since January-February that you can maybe discern a potential peak in pricing – at least judging by that metric. Lead Times: Trend or Head Fake I’m going to display our lead latest lead time […]