While the rest of us are melting from the heat of the sun, Nucor announced it will build a new melt shop at its bar mill in Kingman, Ariz. The $100 million investment will create approximately 140 new full-time jobs and have the capacity to produce around 600,000 tons a year. Construction is expected to […]
As it reported strong second quarter results, Ternium said it expects falling steel prices and high raw materials costs to negatively impact the third quarter. The current “significant” declines in steel prices are due to the normalization of the global steel market after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February of this year. They are also the […]
Steel prices continued to fall in each week of July, following declines in May and June. Hot rolled prices were $955 per ton ($49.75 per cwt) the first week of July, slipping between $35 and $45 per ton each week to reach $840 per ton as of last Tuesday. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator for […]
ArcelorMittal SA has agreed to buy Brazilian steelmaker Companhia Siderúrgica do Pecém (CSP) from Brazilian iron ore miner Vale SA and shareholders. The deal is worth $2.2 billion and is expected to be completed late this year. CSP is a joint venture between Vale, which holds a 50% stake in the company, and South Korean steelmakers […]
US Steel is trying to keep a stiff upper lip despite lower flat-rolled steel selling prices, continued supply chain problems, and an uneven economic outlook. “Let’s face it. There’s a lot of uncertainty. Some people say more uncertainty than ever before,” company president and CEO David Burritt said. “I’m not so sure that’s true. But […]
US Steel recorded modestly lower profits in the second quarter of 2022 compared to the same quarter last year. But the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker remains optimistic about its long-term prospects thanks to the diverse end markets it serves. “We are bullish on US Steel’s future and confident in our ability to execute,” company president and CEO […]
Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. “delivered an exceptional second quarter with record-setting financial performance and outstanding operational execution,” CEO Jim Hoffman said in the service center’s second quarter results release. Reliance reported record second quarter net income of $572.8 million on sales of $4.68 billion. The company’s top results were driven by “ongoing healthy demand” […]
The SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index collapsed last week to the lowest reading we have had since the early days of the pandemic. Current Sentiment, which is how companies feel about their ability to be successful in the current market environment, came in at +43 compared to the +60 recorded just two weeks ago. The […]
We have seen a flurry of activity as we begin the countdown to the start of the 2022 SMU Steel Summit Conference, which will be held at the Georgia International Convention Center on August 22-24. I want to commend Jill Waldman and our events team for the work they have done to date, and for […]
Backward physical integration comes to the aluminum rolling industry SDI’s decision to “jump the fence” and enter the aluminum rolling sector was, in and of itself, blockbuster news. However, the repercussions on the aluminum scrap market may be even more profound. CRU has argued for some time that the big aluminum rolling mills would eventually […]
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. plans to have the No. 5 blast furnace at its Cleveland Works back up and running at full capacity in August, company executives said on a second quarter earnings conference call on Friday, July 22. Along with a furnace reline, the company took advantage of the downtime to perform other important repairs and […]
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. saw strong profit in the second quarter and double free cash flow versus the prior quarter while predicting that even better days were ahead thanks to fixed-price contracts resetting at higher numbers. That projection comes largely because automakers, which typically buy steel on contract terms, are seeing backlogs grow because of supply chain […]
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) posted record second quarter profits despite a modest margin squeeze stemming from lower steel prices and higher scrap costs. The Fort Wayne, Ind.-based steelmaker also remains bullish about the second half of the year despite concerns about demand in some corners of the market. “Customer order entry activity continues to be […]
Steel Dynamics (SDI) this week announced plan to enter the aluminium flat-rolled products market. Pledging a $2.2 billion investment in rolling and recycling operations, SDI seeks to leverage its recycling expertise and technology, alongside its performance culture, to penetrate the underserved domestic can sheet and automotive flat-rolled markets in North America. With a nearly 30-year history […]
Steel Dynamics Inc.’s plan to construct a $2.2 billion recycled aluminum flat-rolled mill and two supporting recycled aluminum slab centers is an unprecedented and an exciting move for a steelmaker, its top executive said. “I haven’t been this excited about a project since we first launched this business,” SDI chairman, president and CEO Mark Millett said […]
Steel Dynamics, Inc. (SDI) unveiled its plan to build a $2.2 billion recycled aluminum flat-rolled mill and two supporting recycled aluminum slab centers. The proposed $1.9 billion aluminum flat-rolled mill will be located in the southeastern US, with an annual production capacity of 650,000 metric tons of finished products. It will serve the sustainable beverage […]
US light vehicle (LV) sales rose to 1.13 million units in June, up 1.8% from 1.11 million units in May. But LV sales in the US fell by 12.6% year-on-year (YoY), the US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) reported. The YoY decline would have been steeper if it weren’t for the fact that sales were […]
North American auto assemblies grew by 11.1% in June, expanding for the second straight month. Though ongoing supply constraints continue, North American production has steadily improved since bottoming out last December. June’s results are 7.7% ahead of the same year-ago period. Disruptions across the North American automotive market have been extensive over the past two […]
The US economy added 372,000 new jobs in June, while the unemployment rate held unchanged at 3.6%, and the labor force shrank by 353,000 people, according to the Labor Department. Hiring last month slowed only slightly, and the US job market remains resilient despite high inflation and waning economic growth. Job gains have slowed since […]
Steel prices continued to ease each week throughout June, following declines in May as well. Hot rolled prices were $1,190 per ton ($59.50 per cwt) the first week of June. Prices then slipped between $45 and $90 each of the following weeks, with the SMU index averaging $995 per ton as of last Tuesday. (This […]
Earlier this week SMU canvassed steel buyers on a variety of subjects, ranging from steel prices to supply and demand to new mill capacity. We are sharing the comments we received in each buyers’ own words, rather than summarizing them in ours. Want to have your voice heard and share your comments with SMU? Contact Brett@SteelMarketUpdate.com […]
We are now eight weeks away from the start of the 2022 SMU Steel Summit Conference. Behind the scenes, there are dozens of SMU and CRU team members working diligently to ensure this year’s conference is exceptional for all our attendees. By exceptional, we mean entertaining content that is valuable and timely. And we also provide […]
We are now eight weeks away from the start of the 2022 SMU Steel Summit Conference. Behind the scenes, there are dozens of SMU and CRU team members working diligently to ensure this year’s conference is exceptional for all our attendees. By exceptional, we mean entertaining content that is valuable and timely. And we also provide […]
I mentioned in my last Final Thoughts that you should keep your eyes open for potential catalysts for higher prices even amid all the signs that tags probably have nowhere to go but lower. It turned out we found one hiding in plain sight. It’s contract talk season in the US, with labor pacts between […]
Chrisopher Kristock has been named vice president of the automotive program for the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). His focus will be on keeping steel’s position as the material of choice for the automotive industry. Kristock will also lead AISI’s Automotive Applications Council, which focuses on innovation, education, and technology transfer within the automotive […]
There are now two short months to go before we kick off the 2022 SMU Steel Summit Conference at the Georgia International Convention Center. As you prepare to join us in Atlanta on August 22-24 we want to give you more details regarding the program for Wednesday, August 24th. You can find more information about […]
SSAB and Shape Corp., have partnered to deliver fossil-free steel crash management and body structure systems to the US market, the steelmaker said. The Grand Haven, Mich.-based tier-one automotive supplier of lightweight body structures, will be testing SSAB’s HYBRIT steel – made from hydrogen-reduced sponge iron – for use in automotive applications. “We are excited […]
The 2022 SMU Steel Summit Conference, which will be held at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta, is just 63 days away. The dates for this year’s conference are Aug. 22-24. We begin with a pre-Summit program at 9 a.m on Aug. 22. The official start of the conference will be at 1 p.m. The […]
The 2022 SMU Steel Summit Conference, which will be held at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta, is just 63 days away. The dates for this year’s conference are Aug. 22-24. We begin with a pre-Summit program at 9 a.m on Aug. 22. The official start of the conference will be at 1 p.m. The […]
By CRU Economist Veronika Akhmadieva, from CRU’s Global Economic Outlook With a higher-than-expected headline CPI inflation reading of 8.6% in May, the Fed opted for an even more aggressive monetary tightening. After a 50 bps increase in the federal funds rate in May – which is the highest increase since 2000 – the Fed raised […]