General Motors continues to crank out some full-size pickup trucks despite a microchip shortage. The Detroit-based automaker is doing so by shipping certain vehicles without chip-containing components necessary for reducing fuel consumption, a company spokesman confirmed. “Due to the global shortage of semiconductors impacting the global auto industry, we are making Active Fuel Management/Dynamic Fuel […]
I am going to spend some time discussing Steel Market Update this evening. I started SMU in August 2008 as a one-man show. The company has grown over the years both in size and scope. The sale of the company to CRU has turned out to be a blessing (I think for both companies), and […]
Biden administration Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo described Section 232 tariffs on imported steel and aluminum as “effective” on Thursday. “The data show that those tariffs have been effective,” Secretary Raimondo said in an interview with MSNBC. Raimondo’s comments are important because trade policies such as Section 232, which Trump rolled out in March 2018, fall […]
The latest manufacturing report from the Institute for Supply Management indicates a ninth consecutive month of growth for the nation’s economy. The ISM manufacturing PMI rose 2.1% to 60.8 in February with new orders and production gaining 3.7% and 2.5%, respectively. “The manufacturing economy continued its recovery in February. Survey committee members reported that their […]
The semiconductor shortage that has forced North American automakers to temporarily halt production at some assembly plants has spilled into the home appliance industry as well. The situation is severe enough that the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM), a lobbying group, has warned about potential re-allocations of semiconductors from that sector to others. There […]
The extreme cold snap that hit the southern U.S. disrupted production at Ternium Mexico, causing the loss of approximately 80,000 tons of production and an estimated $40 million. The facilities are now back to normal operations, but because the mill is operating at full capacity, lost production cannot be made up, said CEO Maximo Vedoya […]
The latest consumer confidence data from The Conference Board indicates that consumers remain cautiously optimistic about the economy. February consumer confidence data showed gains across most inputs; however, the survey results were gathered prior to the Texas power crisis resulting from the recent winter storm and could paint a partial picture of current sentiment. Nevertheless, there […]
President Joe Biden has signed an executive order officially implementing a U.S. supply chain review for critical products such as semiconductors – a lack of which has led to widespread automotive production outages. “Recent shortages of automotive semiconductor chips have forced slowdowns at car manufacturing plants, highlighting how shortages can hurt U.S. workers,” the White House said […]
The manufacturing sector continued to expand in January posting a PMI of 58.7 in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report on Business. The PMI slipped slightly from December’s reading of 60.5, but indicated an eighth month of expansion for the overall economy, said the Institute for Supply Management. “The manufacturing economy continued its recovery in January. […]
U.S. consumer confidence continues to fall as global pandemic fatigue sets in and genuine relief still seems far away. Despite a slight correction and stability throughout the summer months, the composite value of consumer confidence, reported by The Conference Board, has now slipped repeatedly during the fourth quarter from 101.8 in September to 88.8 in […]
Can we measure the relative importance of steel-producing versus steel-consuming industries? Last week, I looked at some ways to measure the steel industry’s importance to the economy and national defense today and in the past. Today, I explore another major point of comparison—the economic and strategic importance of steel production and steel-consuming industries economically and […]
The U.S. manufacturing sector expanded again in December, gaining 3.2 points to register a PMI of 60.7 percent in the December 2020 Manufacturing ISM Report on Business. “The manufacturing economy continued its recovery in December,” said Timothy Fiore, chairman of the Institute for Supply Management Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. “Survey Committee members reported that their […]
The ISM Manufacturing PMI dipped 1.8 points in November to register 57.5, remaining in positive territory but indicating concerns related to the latest surge of COVID-19. “Manufacturing performed well for the sixth straight month, with demand, consumption and inputs registering growth, but at slower rates compared to October,” said Timothy Fiore, chairman of the Institute […]
After declining drastically earlier in the year due to the onset of COVID-19, U.S. consumer confidence has improved, but still has a way to go. Following increases in August and September, the composite value of consumer confidence, as reported by The Conference Board, slipped slightly in October to 100.9, down from 101.8 the month prior. […]
Mexican steelmaker Ternium’s operating rates are approaching full capacity after strong improvement in shipments and demand in the third quarter. Total steel shipments rose 16 percent from the second quarter to 2.8 million tons. Higher finished steel shipments partially offset lower slab shipments to third parties. Pricing recovered significantly from the trough in the second […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Josh Spoores, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor The global sheet market has seen a few key trends emerge across a variety of regions. First, demand has continued to rise from the pandemic-related lows recorded earlier this year. While sheet demand continues to be driven by sequential increases in automotive demand, […]
By CRU Principal Analyst James Campbell, from CRU’s Global Steel Trade Service The recent acceleration in news of a pre-approved vaccine has led us to bring forward the economic recovery to the first half of 2021. Confidence has returned and spending is resuming. An earlier-than-expected vaccine provides upside risks to our automotive and construction outlook. […]
Ryerson Holding Corp. reported incremental improvement in third-quarter 2020. Ryerson’s Q3 revenue increased 7.7 percent to $832 million, but the service center company posted a net loss of $39.9 million, which included a $52 million charge related to pension liabilities and 17.1 million in expenses related to the refinance of 2022 notes. Adjusted net income was […]
Orders for durable goods increased for the fifth straight month, up 1.9 percent to $237.1 billion and surpassing expectations. Transportation orders led the increase with a 4.1 percent gain. Automotive orders rose 1.5 percent in September on continued strong sales for SUV’s and light trucks. The commercial airline industry, showing losses through the pandemic, had […]
Steel Dynamics’ CEO Mark Millett was upbeat on the prospects for steel demand in the fourth quarter and beyond. “You can clearly see what is happening in the marketplace through one’s order book—ours is in pretty good shape,” said Millett. Flat rolled demand and momentum remain strong, inventories are at historical lows, imports continue to […]
U.S. consumer confidence has suffered drastically from the pandemic, but has shown some positive signs of late. The composite value of consumer confidence in September, reported by The Conference Board, was 101.8, surpassing the 100 mark for the first time since March 2020. The three-month moving average (3MMA) moved up to 93.3. Despite the increase, the […]
The manufacturing sector grew again in September, indicating a fifth month of expansion for the economy, according to the latest Manufacturing ISM Report on Business. The September PMI registered 55.4 percent, down 0.6 percent from August. “Manufacturing performed well in the month with demand, consumption and inputs registering growth indicative of a normal expansion cycle,” […]
Cleveland-Cliffs is about to become the largest flat-rolled steel producer in North America. The company announced Monday that it will acquire the operations of ArcelorMittal USA and its subsidiaries for a purchase price of approximately $1.4 billion in equity and cash. The transaction includes 78.2 million shares of Cleveland-Cliffs common stock valued at $500 million, […]
Cleveland-Cliffs is about to become the largest flat-rolled steel producer in North America. The company announced Monday that it will acquire all of the operations of ArcelorMittal USA and its subsidiaries for a purchase price of approximately $1.4 billion. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020. The ArcelorMittal assets include […]
The U.S. has reversed its position on imposing tariffs on Canadian aluminum imports. The U.S Trade Representative said in a statement on Sept. 15, “After consultations with the Canadian government, the United States has determined that trade in non-alloyed, unwrought aluminum is likely to normalize in the last four months of 2020, with imports declining sharply […]
The U.S manufacturing sector expanded faster in August, according the Manufacturing ISM Report on Business. The August PMI rose 1.8 points to 56.0 in August for the highest reading of the year and indicated a fourth month of expansion after a contraction in April. The new orders Index jumped 6.1 points to 67.6 percent, while […]
The U.S. consumer’s confidence in the present situation has deteriorated drastically in response to the pandemic. The composite value of consumer confidence in August, reported by The Conference Board, was 84.8 with a three-month moving average (3MMA) of 91.6. The 3MMA has decreased from 130.4 in February. This indicator is quite volatile, therefore the moving […]
China’s July crude steel output jumped 1.9 percent from June and 9.1 percent from a year ago to 93.36 million metric tons, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. Steel demand rallied after declining during the pandemic-induced shutdowns and is now benefiting from Chinese stimulus measures that include infrastructure building and housing construction. Average daily […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Josh Spoores, from CRU’s Steel Monitor Steel markets have recovered from the depths of Covid-19 global disruption, but this has varied in pace across regions and has been stop-start in many. Indeed, as measured by CRU’s global finished steel CRUspi, finished steel prices bottomed in May at 129.3, the lowest reading […]
By CRU Chief Economist Jumana Saleheen and Economist Ippolito Tarabini, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor The economy is in the midst of a recession triggered by a health crisis. That makes this recession unusual and different. Here we examine how this recession compares to previous recessions. From that we infer key features of the […]