North American auto assemblies declined by 6.2% in November, reversing the nearly 3% increase in October. Last month’s assembly output was among the lowest totals year-to-date (YTD) and just 3.7% higher year-on-year (YoY), according to LMC Automotive data. Though the market remains supply-constrained due to ongoing parts and supply shortages, November’s downgraded production continued to […]
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. said it is introducing a new line of electrical steels to the North American market. The new line will be used to manufacture high-frequency motors and generators. Named Motor-Max, the brand consists of high-frequency, non-oriented electrical steel (HF NOES) designed for use in high-speed motors, electric vehicle (EV) traction motors, aircraft generators, and additional rotating […]
Stellantis said it will idle its Belvidere, Ill., auto plant effective Feb. 28, 2023. The automaker, Chrysler’s European parent company, said 1,350 workers will be affected at the plant, which manufactures the Jeep Cherokee. A Stellantis spokesperson cited a range of factors for the idling, such as fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic and the global […]
Steel sheet prices have bottomed or soon will, according to most respondents to our latest market survey. We’ve also seen an uptick in expectations about future prices. The chart below provides a quick before/after snapshot of expectations for prices ahead of Thanksgiving and then following price hikes of $60 per ton ($3 per cwt) announced […]
The US economy added 263,000 new jobs in November, again outperforming consensus expectations but slightly decreasing from October’s upwardly revised 284,000, according to data from the US Department of Labor. November’s job growth was much better than expected despite the Federal Reserve’s aggressive efforts to slow the labor market and tackle inflation. The jobless rate […]
2022: A Year of Unprecedented Change and Volatility We entered 2022 expecting plenty of change in aluminum and the market delivered more than its fair share of twists and turns. There were 3 macroeconomic effects that rippled through the entire global economy: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent global energy prices soaring, as they “weaponized” their […]
Cleveland-Cliffs is in the process of restarting the No. 7 blast furnace at its Indiana Harbor steel mill in East Chicago, Ind. “All good with the re-start procedure that is ongoing,” a company spokeswoman said in an email to Steel Market Update on Friday, Dec. 2. The Cleveland-based steelmaker said that there had been a […]
ArcelorMittal US has announced new, higher sheet prices with the opening of its 2023 order books. The company said it has also rolled out new grade extras, which will take effect on Jan 1., to reflect higher alloy costs. The price increases effectively apply to AM/NS Calvert, the Alabama mill jointly owned by Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal […]
Cleveland-Cliffs expects to resume operations this week on the No. 7 blast furnace at its Indiana Harbor steel mill in East Chicago, Ind., after a small fire, a company spokeswoman confirmed. The fire occurred over the weekend and at the beginning of a three-day planned maintenance outage, she told Steel Market Update on Monday, Nov. […]
As steel volumes continue to grow, the Port of Hamilton, Ontario, is receiving funding from the Canadian government to increase its steel handling productivity. Canada’s National Trade Corridors Fund is providing CAD $4.9 million (US $3.65 million) in funding to relieve supply chain congestion at the port. The waterway is a critical piece of infrastructure […]
By CRU Research Analyst Aaron Kearney-Keaveny, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor The CRU metallics price indicator (CRUmpi) for November fell by 3.5% month-on-month (MoM), to 298.3, which is the lowest level since December 2020. Global scrap demand continues to be undermined by weak steel market fundamentals in key markets. Over the past few months, […]
Steel market conditions might be tough for the balance of the year, but Stelco sees the early signs of better times in the first quarter. The Hamilton, Ontario-based integrated sheet producer is also keeping a keen eye out for potential distressed acquisitions, company executives suggested during an earnings conference call with analysts on Wednesday, Nov. […]
Greenwave Technology Solutions Inc. is significantly expanding its operations with two new metal recycling facilities, new trucks, and an online car buying program. The Suffolk, Va.-based recycler currently operates 11 facilities in Virginia and North Carolina through its subsidiary Empire Services Inc. This month, its 12th facility will open in Fairmont, N.C., and in December, a […]
North American auto assemblies rose by 8.7% in October, rebounding from a similar decline in September. Last month’s assembly output was the third-best total year-to-date (YTD) and nearly 22% higher year-on-year (YoY), according to LMC Automotive data. Though the market remains supply-constrained due to ongoing parts and supply shortages, production in October continued to show signs […]
US light vehicle (LV) sales grew in October, coming in at an unadjusted figure of 1.15 million units. Last month’s total was a 9.5% increase year-on-year (YoY), the US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reported. October was the third consecutive month to see YoY increases in sales. Prior to August, YoY sales gains had not been […]
By CRU Senior Analyst, Puneet Paliwal, from CRU’s Scrap, DRI/HBI & Pig Iron Monitor The CRU metallics price indicator (CRUmpi) for November fell by 3.5% month-on-month (MoM), to 298.3, which is the lowest level since December 2020. Global scrap demand continues to be undermined by weak steel market fundamentals in key markets, causing prices to stay […]
The US economy added 261,000 new jobs in October, outperforming consensus expectations but still decelerating to the slowest pace since December 2020, according to data from the US Department of Labor. In contrast, the unemployment rate moved higher last month to 3.7%, after estimates expected the October measure to remain sideways and match the five-decade […]
After posting reduced profits in the second quarter (ended Sept. 30) of its fiscal 2023 year, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario-based Algoma Steel expects to continue to be impacted in the current quarter by operational challenges and overall softness in the steel market. Company executives commented on these challenges and provided an update on operations during […]
Latin American steelmaker Ternium saw a big earnings drop in the third quarter but remains upbeat on its position in and the fundamentals of the North American markets, according to the company’s Q3 earnings report and conference call with analysts on Thursday, Oct. 3. The Luxembourg-based company’s Q3 net income declined substantially, falling 84% year-on-year […]
Marubeni-Itochu Steel America Inc. (MISA) has acquired Worthington Specialty Processing (WSP), a joint venture between Worthington Industries and United States Steel Corp. The New York-based value-added steel and aluminum processor and North American subsidiary of Japan’s Marubeni-Itochu Steel Inc. acquired WSP’s only remaining facility in Jackson, Mich. in an all-cash deal for an undisclosed sum. […]
It’s official. Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) will build its $1.9 billion flat-rolled aluminum mill in Columbus, Miss., where the company already operates an electric-arc furnace (EAF) steel sheet mill. The Fort Wayne, Ind.-based steelmaker said it would also construct a “biocarbon” facility in Columbus to reduce reliance on anthracite coal in its EAFs and to […]
The reshoring of US manufacturing, nonresidential construction, and semiconductor manufacturing are key areas where Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. remains incredibly bullish. Speaking on the company’s third quarter earnings conference call with analysts on Thurs., Oct. 27, executives expressed their optimism for these markets. Reshoring/nearshoring is “legit,” and the company is “pumped up about it,” […]
US Steel does not currently have any plans to bring back recently idled blast furnaces as it awaits an improvement in market conditions. The Pittsburgh-based steelmaker in September indefinitely idled the No. 3 Edgar Thomson blast furnace at its Mon Valley Works in western Pennsylvania and also the No. 8 BF at its Gary Works […]
In a positive sign for the automotive market, General Motors Co. completed and shipped a large number of vehicles in the third quarter, effectively increasing its US dealer inventories. “As we’ve moved through the year, we’ve seen gradual improvement in the supply chain, including semiconductors,” chairwoman and CEO Mary Barra said on the company’s Q3 […]
Maintenance costs and increasing shipments to the automotive sector were major areas of discussion on Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.’s quarterly conference call with analysts on Tuesday, Oct. 25. With major maintenance projects now complete and shipments starting to increase to auto customers, Cliffs is confident it can return to quarterly shipment levels of close to four million tons. […]
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. expects a continuation of the trend it saw in the third quarter of increasing shipments to the automotive sector. This should support steel pricing going forward, the steelmaker said in its Q3 earnings report released on Tuesday, Oct. 25. “Shipments to our automotive clients significantly improved in Q3, achieving a level among the highest in […]
With September’s quarter close comes the wave of corporate analysts’ reports. Several were released this week, and all warn of challenging times ahead. Demand and prices are falling, as costs are rising, leaving the aluminum value chain scissored in the near term. As context for these results, CRU has refreshed June’s base economic forecast and […]
Steel Dynamics Inc. plans to announce where its new aluminum flat-rolled mill will be located within the next few weeks. Site selection is wrapping up, and the purchase of equipment packages and major mill components has been completed over the past few weeks, SDI chairman, president, and CEO Mark Millett said on the company’s third-quarter […]
US light vehicle (LV) sales grew in September, coming in at 1.15 million units, unadjusted. Last month’s total was a 10.8% increase year-on-year (YoY), the US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reported. The YoY gain was just the second since July 2021. While this was the second consecutive month of YoY increases, it was helped […]
North American auto assemblies declined by 8.7% in September after reaching their highest mark in nearly two years the month prior. Despite the lower output in September, production was a hefty 39.6% higher year-on-year (YoY) and still the third-best total year-to-date (YTD), according to LMC Automotive data. Though the market remains supply-constrained due to ongoing […]