In a deal in the construction materials market, Carlisle Companies, Inc., has agreed to acquire Petersen Aluminum Corp. for approximately $197 million. Headquartered in Elk Grove Village, Ill., Petersen’s primary business is the manufacture and distribution of architectural metal roof panels, steel and aluminum flat sheets and coils, wall panels, perimeter roof edge systems and […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: In the week following the G20 summit meeting in Buenos Aires, there is more uncertainty than ever about the U.S.-China negotiations over tariffs. Early in the week, President Trump moved the deadline for agreement between the U.S. and […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: In the week following the G20 summit meeting in Buenos Aires, there is more uncertainty than ever about the U.S.-China negotiations over tariffs. Early in the week, President Trump moved the deadline for agreement between the U.S. and […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: A question came up this week about whether the end of steel tariffs would be disruptive to the market in the same way as the onset of the tariffs. Please don’t get the wrong idea. I am not predicting […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: There are several currents surrounding the steel tariffs this holiday season. As we enjoy the end of this year, I am looking at the first few months of 2019 and how the steel trade situation could evolve. • […]
GFG Alliance’s purchase of Keystone Consolidated Industries this week was the latest move by British industrialist Sanjeev Gupta to become a leading producer of both long and flat steel products in the United States. GFG Alliance has been buying up steel, aluminum and energy assets around the world. On Monday, its Liberty Steel USA division […]
Demand remains strong in the manufacturing sector, according to the latest Manufacturing ISM Report on Business. The PMI, from the Institute for Supply Management, increased 1.6 percentage points to 59.3 in November. A PMI reading above 50 indicates expansion. New orders rose 4.7 points to 61.1, well above the 52.4 percent value that indicates growth. […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: On a very busy weekend, two major developments (potentially): USMCA Signed in Buenos Aires The new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) was signed by the leaders of all three countries on Friday. The agreement modernizes NAFTA in some areas and […]
A new North American trade agreement was signed on Friday by leaders of the U.S., Mexico and Canada at the G20 Summit in Buenos Aires. The U.S-Mexico-Canada Agreement, as it will be called by the United States, failed to address the Section 232 tariffs that were at the root of contentious negotiations. “The USMCA is […]
Some government and industry leaders praised the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that was signed by the three nations on Friday, while others remained critical of the trade pact, suggesting it was a missed opportunity to remove the Section 232 tariffs on Canada and Mexico. Incoming Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi called the agreement a “work […]
Tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum exports to Mexico may be coming if the Trump administration does not drop its Section 232 tariffs on Mexican imports, says Mexican steel association Canacero. “They already agreed, this government and the incoming one, that we will apply resounding mirror measures,” Canacero Vice President Raul Gutierrez said at a […]
Few of the steel buyers canvassed by Steel Market Update this week expect flat roll prices to rise significantly in the first quarter. Most anticipate prices stabilizing or continuing to trend downward, especially if the Trump administration lifts the Section 232 tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico. The promise of increased supplies from the […]
General Motors announced Thursday that it will stop production at five North American assembly plants by the end of 2019, alarming workers and suppliers. The closings include Detroit-Hamtramck, Warren Transmission and Lordstown Assembly in Ohio, Oshawa Assembly in Ontario and Baltimore Operations in Maryland. It will be the first closure for GM since 2010. The […]
In response to widespread concerns about the pace, transparency and fairness of the Section 232 steel and aluminum tariff exclusion process, a bipartisan group of senators has requested that the Government Accountability Office conduct an independent review of the Commerce Department’s performance. In a Nov. 26 letter to the GAO, U.S. Senators Doug Jones (D-Ala.), […]
Metalforming firms are expecting a decline in business conditions and new orders during the next three months, according to the November 2018 Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report. The PMA is a monthly economic indicator for manufacturing, sampling 122 metalforming companies in the United States and Canada. Current average shipping levels were steady in […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: On Nov. 21, the WTO Dispute Settlement Body conducted its regular monthly meeting. The DSB is composed of all WTO members and oversees cases brought under the WTO Dispute Settlement Understanding. That is one of the 23 WTO […]
Two out of three respondents to Steel Market Update’s market trends questionnaire this week said they remain concerned about the possible negative impacts of trade tariffs on their business and that of their customers. The Section 232 tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum remain a serious obstacle to the new North American free trade […]
The North American auto industry is urging the White House to drop the Section 232 tariffs before the official signing of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). During testimony last week before the International Trade Commission, the Motor and Equipment Manufacturers Association, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and the American Automotive Policy Council asked the administration to exempt […]
Steel buyers can be fickle people. They are tasked with keeping their company in product, and that those purchases be competitively priced at the time they are used. This is a daunting task when markets ebb and flow, and even more difficult when the government decides to become a major player in determining who will […]
Norfolk Iron & Metal Co., a full-line steel service center, and O’Neal Industries Inc. (ONI), the largest family-owned group of metals service centers in the United States, have entered into a definitive agreement in which Norfolk Iron will acquire O’Neal Flat Rolled Metals, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ONI. The companies expect to close the […]
Steel Facing Stiff Competition from Other Products This article is regularly published for our Premium users, but we decided to share it with our entire readership this month. If you are interested in upgrading to a Premium subscription, contact us at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com or 800-432-3475. Steel is becoming less competitive compared to aluminum, plastic and wood. […]
“The glass ceiling is myth that gives you an excuse to fail.” A bold statement to make at a gathering of professional women, but that is what keynote speaker Mary Lindsey, Vice President and CFO Commercial Metals Co., said at the Association of Women in the Metal Industries annual conference last week. “There is too much […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: It’s worth a moment to reflect on the end, one century ago today, of the First World War, “the war to end wars.” The Armistice led to a bitter peace and another even more destructive war, the effects […]
The price of new nonresidential buildings accelerated in October as contractors attempted to recoup fast-rising costs for materials and labor, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of new Labor Department data. Association officials said that trade tensions and labor shortages are contributing to higher construction prices, making it harder for […]
The laws of unintended consequences concern me. President Trump’s Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs, as well as Section 301 tariffs, are only beginning to have an impact on the consumer. It is only a matter of time before consumers have to react as they do not have unlimited cash flow to pay higher prices […]
Toronto-based Russel Metals reported “stellar” results for its third quarter, attributing the company’s success to a high steel price environment and improved demand in all three of its business segments: service centers, energy products and steel distributors. Trade actions by government authorities have increased steel prices, which has benefited both producers and distributors. However, these […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: Commentators and administration officials have filled the airwaves with speculation about the future course of the U.S.-China “trade war” over the last few weeks. Today, I provide a brief assessment of where this might be going. Memories of Lenin’s […]
Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. announced the completed acquisition of toll processor and transportation/logistics company All Metals Holdings, LLC. It is the third acquisition for Reliance in 2018. All Metals includes operating subsidiaries All Metals Processing & Logistics, Inc., and All Metals Transportation and Logistics, Inc. AMPL, headquartered in Spartanburg, S.C., with an additional facility […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: When is a product from Japan instead of China? Turns out, it depends on why you’re asking. For purposes of the required “marking” of imported products, U.S. Customs and Border Protection decides whether a product composed of several […]
Manufacturing activity continues to be strong, according to the latest ISM Report on Business, although slowing its pace of growth as it enters the fourth quarter. The October PMI declined 2.1 percentage points from September to register 57.7 percent. Most of the components of the PMI are trending at a slower rate. The new orders […]