The following Trade Policy & Economic Briefing was authored by CRU Principal Economist Lisa Morrison Since March 2018, there has been a broad strengthening of the U.S. dollar. This has developed because of rising U.S. interest rates and strong U.S. economic growth, which is in relative contrast to continued, historically low Eurozone interest rates […]
As I mentioned in a recent newsletter, comments received from our readers will many times lead to an article, or even a series of articles. One of our goals is to dig into topics of interest to our readers from as many angles as possible, and then allow you to make your own conclusions. For […]
If your company is interested in a sponsor spot at the 2019 SMU Steel Summit Conference in Atlanta (Aug. 26-28), please contact Jill Waldman at Jill@SteelMarketUpdate.com so we can get you our sponsorship package as soon as it is ready. Those companies that were sponsors this year will have first crack at committing for 2019. […]
Ferrous scrap prices in most regions have settled down by $20 to $30 per ton in September and could fall further in October as mills schedule maintenance outages, report some Steel Market Update sources. Others believe stronger export demand could help sustain prices next month. Prime grades declined by $20, while obsoletes dipped a bit […]
There have been many comments regarding the recent article I did on steel index methodologies. Included were comments/answers from two of the price providers mentioned at the beginning of the article who were unable to get to me prior to our publication deadline. I am going to do a follow-up article on Sunday evening. What […]
SMU President & CEO John Packard will be the featured speaker at the AWMI Industry Dinner at the Carnegie Hall at Newport in Newport, Ky., on Oct. 18. The event is open to the public. The mission of the Association of Women in the Metal Industries (AWMI) is to educate, network and mentor those in […]
Written by John Packard, President & CEO, Steel Market Update When I was selling steel for a domestic mill (Winner Steel, now called NLMK Sharon), there was always cause for concern when steel buyers would contact me and reference a price from a trade publication that I knew to be “out of date” with the […]
Another busy week for me as our first Steel 201: Introduction to Advanced High Strength & Other New Steels workshop will be conducted at AK Steel on Tuesday and Wednesday (Monday is a travel day for me). We have a sold-out workshop, we have some new instructors and for the first time we will be […]
Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum products from Canada and Mexico are back in the spotlight now that NAFTA talks are, hopefully, nearing an end. Steel associations from Canada and Mexico are calling for the tariffs to be terminated while the negotiations are under way. Mexican association Canacero has stated that a NAFTA deal […]
The following calculation is used by Steel Market Update to identify the theoretical spread between foreign hot rolled steel import prices (delivered to USA ports) and domestic hot rolled coil prices (FOB domestic mills). We want our readers to be aware that this is only a “theoretical” calculation as freight costs, trader margin and other […]
I have received many questions regarding the variance in pricing between the various flat rolled steel indexes out there. I have been researching the methodologies between the indexes. I am asking each one to explain how their index works and to provide details or a better explanation in some of the gray areas that may […]
The Trump administration tariffs have had the expected effect on steel imports and steel pricing this year, but prices for hot rolled coil and plate could moderate a bit next year as economic growth slows and the cost of steelmaking raw materials begins to decline, forecasts Josh Spoores, principal steel analyst for the CRU Group. […]
Our next Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshop will be held in Toledo, Ohio on December 11 & 12, 2018. We will be touring the North Star BlueScope steel mill. The NSB mill produces steel from scrap, pig iron and other iron units in their EAF (electric arc furnace). SMU would […]
Steel Market Update’s next Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshop will be held in Starkville, Miss., on Jan. 29-30, 2019. We will be touring the Steel Dynamics Columbus steel mill. The SDI mill produces steel from scrap, pig iron and other iron units in their EAF (electric arc furnace). SMU would […]
We sold out our first Steel 201 workshop which will be held next week at AK Steel in Middletown, Ohio. I am excited to conduct this workshop with the AK Steel team. It is the first time we have visited their Research and Innovation Center (RIC) and the fully integrated Middletown steel mill. Thank you […]
Ferrous scrap prices are likely to decline further in September after a modest drop in August, agree Steel Market Update sources. CRU Steel Analyst Ryan McKinley expects a drop of about $20 per ton across the board in September, driven primarily by an overhang of shredded scrap in the market and weak export demand. “There […]
Due to our conference, we will hold back on producing our steel indices until Thursday of this week. It’s Tuesday evening and we are deep into our 8th SMU Steel Summit Conference. The official number of attendees is 912, which exceeded our most optimistic expectations when we did our last forecast about six months back. Tomorrow […]
The 8th SMU Steel Summit Conference will begin on Monday, Aug. 27. Attendees will be able to gather their credentials at the south entrance of the Georgia International Convention Center (GICC) beginning at 10:00 a.m. ET. Monday’s program begins at 1 p.m. ET sharp. Question: How to get to the Georgia International Convention Center and […]
The last few days leading up to what has become a major steel conference have been hectic to say the least. My SMU team has been playing the role of the Little Engine that Could (I think I can, I think I can…) and I am amazed when we hit the crest of the hill […]
I have already been to Atlanta and now I am on my way to Minnesota for my introduction to my responsibilities as a trustee for Hamline University, the college I graduated from many years ago. On Saturday, I will jet back to Atlanta to join the SMU team as we finish preparations and get the […]
Editor’s note: The following was contributed by Analyst Ryan Cochrane of the CRU Group. Global concentrate inventories first reached critical levels in 2017 Q1, leading to Chinese smelter utilization rates falling below 90 percent and remaining at depressed levels since. Without much buffer concentrate stock remaining, the relationship between mine supply and Chinese smelter output […]
The following calculation is used by Steel Market Update to identify the theoretical spread between foreign hot rolled steel import prices (delivered to USA ports) and domestic hot rolled coil prices (FOB domestic mills). We want our readers to be aware that this is only a “theoretical” calculation as freight costs, trader margin and other […]
Editor’s note: The following was contributed by analysts at the CRU Group. The Turkish-U.S. political relationship has soured sharply in the past week. U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted relations were “not so good” on Friday, Aug. 10, and doubled tariffs on U.S. imports of Turkish steel. Turkish President Erdogan responded with anger, suggesting the country […]
CRU zinc analyst Helen O’Cleary reported late last week on what was causing the short-term movement of zinc pricing: “Zinc’s price has been pressured lower again in recent days on a combination of risk-averse investor sentiment, U.S. dollar strength and a sizeable delivery of warrants into the LME’s New Orleans warehouses. It breached support at […]
By CRU Group’s Zinc Analysis Team Despite lower-than-expected smelter output in China last year, which contributed to record refined deficits, 2018 marked the turning point for zinc’s price, reports CRU Group’s Zinc Analysis Team. Despite a still-tight refined market with stocks at critical levels, zinc’s price has had a shaky start to 2019, trading at […]
We are now one week away from the start of the 2018 SMU Steel Summit Conference. We are continuing to accept registrations, and we expect the conference to be completely full when we kick off at 1 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 27. If you would like to register, you can do so on our website […]
A couple of months ago, Steel Market Update was speaking in front of a group from the financial community. We were asked, “What do you look for as a sign when prices are about to change direction?” Our answer was a mill price increase announcement. Earlier this week, ArcelorMittal USA announced a $30 per ton […]
The U.S. trade situation is causing some consternation, according to analysts at CRU. During a webinar on Tuesday, which was made available to SMU member companies, analysts discussed the trade measures that have been instituted by the Trump administration and the potential impact on the U.S. and global economies. Steel and aluminum tariffs were imposed […]
Boom, zinc has collapsed taking a big hit on Wednesday when it dropped to $1.05 per pound. At the beginning of 2018, zinc was trading over $1.60 per pound. The $1.05 per pound level was last seen in late fourth-quarter 2016. Yesterday, during the HARDI steel conference call, coating extras for galvanized steel were discussed. […]
Steel Market Update expects to welcome nearly 900 executives to our Steel Summit Conference in Atlanta Aug. 27-29. There is still time to sign up if you would like to be one of them. To register, visit: www.SteelMarketUpdate.com/Events/Steel-Summit or by contacting our office at 772-932-7538. See the full conference program below: Making Sense Out of […]