Editor’s note: Steel Market Update is sharing the following Premium content with all its readers in this issue. For more information on how to upgrade to a Premium-level subscription, email info@SteelMarketUpdate.com. U.S. economic growth slowed to 2.6 percent in fourth-quarter 2018, down from 3.4 percent in the third quarter, according to the initial estimate of […]
The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC) futures market was written by David Feldstein. As the Flack Global Metals Chief Market Risk Officer, Dave is an active participant in the hot rolled futures market, and we believe he provides insightful commentary and trading ideas to our readers. Besides writing futures articles for Steel […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: We are about to celebrate (or mourn, as the case might be) the first anniversary of “national security” tariffs on steel and aluminum. As we all know, in March 2018 President Trump proclaimed 25 percent tariffs on most steel […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: We are about to celebrate (or mourn, as the case might be) the first anniversary of “national security” tariffs on steel and aluminum. As we all know, in March 2018 President Trump proclaimed 25 percent tariffs on most steel […]
(Editor’s note: John Packard is traveling.) Just as it appears steel prices have finally turned the corner the pressure is on to get final approval of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Trade officials in Canada and Mexico have stated in various press reports that they will not pass the new North American free trade agreement with the […]
Oil production in the U.S. was at an all-time high in October last year and declined only slightly in the latest data for November. The price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil has recovered somewhat from its recent low of $44.48 on Dec. 27. The spot price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) FOB Cushing, Okla., […]
President Trump has received the long-awaited report from the Commerce Department on whether imports of automobiles and auto parts pose a threat to national security and now has 90 days to consider whether to place a 25 percent tariff on automotive imports under Section 232. Details of the Commerce findings were not disclosed but the […]
Canada is stepping up its efforts to convince the Trump administration to lift the Section 232 restrictions on steel and aluminum. After meeting with Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley earlier in the week, Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland appealed to U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Saturday for help in removing the tariffs. “We spoke a […]
The government shutdown is over but much of the data that Steel Market Update uses in its regular analyses for Premium members is still not available. This is a brief summary of where we are today in the process of data recovery. The longest government shutdown in U.S. history, lasting 35 days from Dec. 22 […]
Editor’s note: The following is excerpted from the Feb. 13 CRU Steel Sheet Monitor; editing by CRU Principal Analyst Josh Spoores. In our Steel Sheet Products Monitor last month, we asked if the market was near an inflection point. That report was published on the sixth working day of the year and, at that point, global sheet […]
The following op-ed in support of steel tariffs, published last week by Alabama’s AL.com, was written by Thomas Gibson, president and CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute. Gibson will be a keynote speaker at Steel Market Update’s 2019 Steel Summit, scheduled for Aug. 26-28 in Atlanta. This will be Gibson’s first appearance at […]
Earlier this week I was at the Port of Tampa Steel Conference as I was asked to be the master of ceremonies, and I also moderated the two main panels on Wednesday morning. Both panels dealt with trade issues with the primary focus being on the Section 232 tariffs on steel. The Port of Tampa […]
November apparent steel supply was calculated at 9,140,649 net tons, according to data released late last week. Apparent steel supply is determined by adding domestic steel shipments and finished U.S. steel imports, then subtracting total U.S. steel exports. November apparent steel supply saw a 417,102 ton or 4.8 percent increase compared to the same month […]
U.S. steel exports in November totaled 615,818 net tons (558,661 metric tons), down 2.4 percent from October, and down 30.2 percent from levels one year ago. After the September 2018 low of 584,858 tons, last November is the next lowest month for exports since February 2009 when 602,945 tons of steel were exported outside of […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: Section 232 tariffs are increasingly in the news. Today, I describe two issues that are central to the prosperity (and in many cases the survival) of steel-using manufacturers. Exclusions With the end of the government shutdown, the exclusion […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: Section 232 tariffs are increasingly in the news. Today, I describe two issues that are central to the prosperity (and in many cases the survival) of steel-using manufacturers. Exclusions With the end of the government shutdown, the exclusion […]
Rolled product imports increased by 4.5 percent in January, calculated as a three-month moving average (3MMA) year over year. This early look at January’s import volume is based on Department of Commerce license data (see explanation below). Beginning in January 2018, we expanded this import analysis to include all major steel sectors: sheet, plate, longs […]
By CRU Australia Analyst Ryan Smith China has traditionally dominated long product exports to the South East Asia (SEA) region. However, a change in market dynamics has reduced Chinese export volumes and created an opportunity for exporters from further afield. In Turkey, economic challenges, in combination with rising trade barriers such as EU safeguards and […]
Global manufacturing is approaching the stagnation point, says a new survey by J.P. Morgan and IHS Markit. The J.P. Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI fell for the ninth month in January to register 50.7, its lowest reading since August 2016. Trade tension originating with the U.S. was a common theme throughout the IHS Markit PMI reports […]
By CRU Steel Editor Linda Lin, Shanghai, China Through late December and the first half of January, Chinese exporters were able to realize a small increase in steel export prices for the first time since August. The m/m increase in HR coil was limited to $2 /t, while rebar prices rose by $6 /t. Price […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: The Court of International Trade (CIT) has rejected the U.S. Commerce Department’s finding that a “particular market situation” justifies steep antidumping margins against South Korean exports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) to the United States. In a […]
Steel Dynamics is excited about its recently announced plans for a new steel mill in the Southwest. After an outstanding year, breaking records for shipments, sales, net income and cash flow, CEO Mark Millett is looking forward to filling a steel void in the southwestern U.S. and Mexico. Steel Dynamics hopes to announce a site […]
U.S. ports reported a record year for cargo volume in 2018. The Port of Los Angeles broke its all-time cargo record for the third time in a row, moving 9,458,749 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units the size of a container), a 1.2 percent increase from 2017. The Port of New Orleans reported a new record and a […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: A bill set for introduction today in the House of Representatives would, if enacted, fundamentally change the basics of U.S. policy on international trade. Rep. Sean Duffy (R-Wis.) will introduce the bill, which was drafted by the Trump administration. […]
Don’t expect to have your Section 232 exclusion request looked at any time soon. The Commerce Department has announced that, due to the number of furloughed employees during the partial government shutdown, it will temporarily suspend processing of Section 232 exclusions. Contingency plans at the nation’s trade offices have dramatically reduced the number of people […]
Analysts at the CRU Group share their latest information on the global iron ore and coking coal markets. Iron Ore Prices Steady on Short Supply Weak seaborne supply kept iron ore prices elevated during the past week. The market is also closely following the development of the fire at Rio Tinto’s Cape Lambert port, which […]
Auto production in North America exhibited the normal slowdown in December. This is a new report using LMC Automotive as the data source for automotive assemblies in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The breakdown of assemblies is “Personal” (cars for personal use) and “Commercial” (light vehicles rated at less than 6.0 metric tons gross vehicle […]
The North American steel sheet market in 2018 was heavily influenced by effects from the Section 232 tariffs. These tariffs greatly increased U.S. sheet prices, while at the same time helped to further reduce imports. Our forecast today calls for a more measured rate of increase for underlying industrial growth, while prices will more closely […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: When the unusual happens, we often are jarred from our routine. I have experienced this since Dec. 21, when the government shutdown officially began at midnight (Dec. 22). The shutdown is “partial,” meaning that only certain government departments […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: When the unusual happens, we often are jarred from our routine. I have experienced this since Dec. 21, when the government shutdown officially began at midnight (Dec. 22). The shutdown is “partial,” meaning that only certain government departments […]