Earlier this week, Steel Market Update received an email from a consulting company that is working with a client who is suffering through the high spot steel prices and wanted advice on how to negotiate a contract with their suppliers and basically how to manage the steel price risk. There are many ways to respond to […]
Hot-rolled coil lead times at some mills are well into June, so steel buyers have to ask themselves now whether a year-long upswing in prices is sustainable. In short, can hot-rolled coil prices continue their record run upward? First a Look Back at Where We’ve Been Steel Market Update’s average hot-rolled coil price was $1,340 […]
Over the weekend I was speaking with the CEO of a service center and we were talking about the resistance he was seeing from his plant employees. Many of them did not want to get the COVID vaccine. The office people were mostly vaccinated, but the plant people were not. We discussed the possibility of […]
If you are a buyer (or seller) of cold rolled, galvanized or Galvalume steels, you are aware of the volatility in your pricing, which may or may not mirror the price of hot rolled coil. Over the past few years, the spread between hot rolled base prices and the base prices being asked for cold […]
Foreign steel imports are building, according to the latest license data from the U.S. government. Total licenses were 2.7 million net tons for March. This is well above the 1.984 million net ton average over the last two years. It is also equal to or above the first month of the quarter tonnage, which is […]
Looking for a Top… Looking for Steel…. As we conduct our analysis of the flat rolled and plate steel prices this week, we cannot help but notice the pace of increases has slowed…or is the slowing due to many mill order books being closed and having nothing new to offer. The availability of spot tonnage […]
Looking for a Top… Looking for Steel…. As we conduct our analysis of the flat rolled and plate steel prices this week, we cannot help but notice the pace of increases has slowed…or is the slowing due to many mill order books being closed and having nothing new to offer. The availability of spot tonnage […]
The temptation to purchase foreign hot rolled over domestic steel remains high, as more U.S. buyers place orders for foreign material despite long lead times for delivery. Since mid-March, foreign steel prices have begun to increase at a greater rate compared to domestic prices, yet foreign prices still hold potential discounts of 10-24%, according to […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Erik Hedborg and Analyst Nikki Ni, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor The city of Tangshan, two hours east of Beijing, plays an extremely important role in the global steel market. It is the largest steelmaking hub in the world and accounts for 14% of China’s crude steel production, equal to […]
The CRU Group has developed a web-based tool to help users understand emissions at the company and asset level to make better decisions in pursuit of lowering the carbon released into the atmosphere. CRU’s Emissions Analysis Tool uses standardized data and methodologies, calibrated to existing schemes such as the EU emissions trading system (EU ETS), International […]
Would you like to learn how to protect your business and minimize risk associated with unfavorable price changes, by figuring out what exactly is meant by “hedging a position”? Steel Market Update can help to demystify hedging so you can quickly gain a concrete understanding of hedging basics. You will also learn about terminology, market […]
In the famous words of Isaac Newton, “what goes up must come down.” While he was not referring to steel prices per se, the sentiment still holds true. Steel tags can’t stay at record highs indefinitely. Supply will eventually catch up with demand. What happens then? Will prices see a sharp correction or a gradual […]
In the famous words of Isaac Newton, “what goes up must come down.” While he was not referring to steel prices per se, the sentiment still holds true. Steel tags can’t stay at record highs indefinitely. Supply will eventually catch up with demand. What happens then? Will prices see a sharp correction or a gradual […]
I want to write a few words today about Section 232. Not for or against it. Just some reflections on a trade action that’s been with us for a lot longer than I expected. The catalyst for that reflection was a conference call the Economic Policy Institute, a Washington policy think tank, held earlier this […]
Steel buyers believe benchmark hot rolled prices will peak at $1,350 to $1,400 per ton ($67.50/cwt-$70.00/cwt) based on our canvassing of the flat rolled and plate markets this week. We are seeing spot HRC orders at $1,300 per ton with a few buyers telling us there are offers up to $1,340 per ton from the […]
Steel buyers believe benchmark hot rolled prices will peak at $1,350 to $1,400 per ton ($67.50/cwt-$70.00/cwt) based on our canvassing of the flat rolled and plate steel markets this week. We are seeing spot HRC orders at $1,300 per ton with a few buyers telling us there are offers up to $1,340 per ton from […]
By CRU Prices Analyst Estelle Tran, from CRU’s Global Steel Trade Service The strength and longevity of the current uptrend in steel prices has surprised many market participants, and mill maintenance outages are expected to keep lead times extended. The latest lead time survey on March 15-17 from Steel Market Update, which is part of […]
The temptation to purchase hot rolled steel imports over steel produced domestically continues to grow, as more U.S. buyers place orders for foreign material despite long lead times for delivery. As domestic prices soar higher, foreign prices hold potential discounts of 11% to 27%, according to Steel Market Update’s latest foreign versus domestic hot rolled […]
U.S. electric-arc furnace mills have a leg up on the world when it comes to meeting new carbon emissions standards–for now, said CRU Senior Analyst Ryan Smith. That’s according to a “carbon curve” Smith presented that is part of CRU Group’s Emissions Analysis Tool. The carbon curve is similar to the cost curve many steel […]
U.S. electric-arc furnace mills have a leg up on the world when it comes to meeting new carbon emissions standards–for now, said CRU Senior Analyst Ryan Smith. That’s according to a “carbon curve” Smith presented that is part of CRU Group’s Emissions Analysis Tool. The carbon curve is similar to the cost curve many steel […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Erik Hedborg, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor Iron ore prices have been steady in the past week as stricter pollution controls in China have been lifted and seaborne supply has been strong. On Tuesday, March 16, CRU has assessed the 62% Fe fines price at $166.0 /dmt, up $1.0 /dmt […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Matt Watkins from CRU’s Global Steel Trade Service International prices have rebounded in March from a dip that happened in February (see chart 1). Larger m/m gains have occurred in flats than in longs, which have been more impacted by a pullback in scrap costs, but almost all prices are up […]
By CRU Economist Anissa Chabib and Principal Economist Alex Tuckett The Fed’s Jerome Powell has continued to strike a dovish tone, emphasizing that the Fed will continue to support the economy until “substantial progress has been made.” However, he stopped short of any attempt to directly push back against recent rises in bond yields. Furthermore, […]
By CRU Analyst Sam Grant, from CRU’s Zinc Monitor The U.S. COVID-19 vaccination program has continued to make impressive headway over the past month, with over 100 M doses now administered across the country. With more transmissible strains of the virus now present in the U.S., and with many states continuing to roll back containment […]
By CRU Analyst George Pearson, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor Details of China’s Tangshan emission control policy that circulated in the last week have provided a further boost to Chinese steel prices but have weighed on prices for iron ore. The high cost of freight is still reducing the competitiveness of sheet imports in […]
By CRU Economist Ippolito Tarabini and Principal Economist Alex Tuckett, from CRU’s Exchange Rate Outlook Q1 2021 The latest foreign exchange market developments have shown the resilience of the dollar. Since the start of the year, the single most important driver of dollar strength has been U.S. fiscal policy, which has boosted expectations of U.S. […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Erik Hedborg, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor Iron ore prices have risen by $10 /dmt in the past week as Tangshan cuts have raised steel margins and steelmakers in other regions are seeing an uplift in production. On Tuesday, March 30, the 62% Fe fines price was assessed at $168 […]
By CRU Principal Economist Alex Tuckett and CRU Chief Economist Jumana Saleheen, from CRU’s March Global Economic Outlook In March, we received good news on the outlook for the world’s two largest economies: the U.S. stimulus package was larger than expected, and economic growth in China is stronger. We expect a temporary rise in inflation in […]
By CRU Analyst Atul Kulkarni, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor The U.S. manufacturing PMI rose to a 38-year high during March as the Biden government’s $1.9 trillion stimulus package improved sentiment. U.S. vehicle production and durable goods new orders stayed strong during February. Although U.S. crude steel capacity utilization increased during March, sheet supply […]
By CRU Analyst Dave Thewlis, from CRU’s Steel Long Products Monitor Prices among all types of long products rose again in April, the most challenged of which remains wire rod. February’s winter storms, which were extreme enough to cause a 2.2% m/m decline in U.S. industrial production, made a difficult situation worse for wire rod […]