Flat rolled and plate steel prices were mixed in what has to be considered yet another quiet week for pricing. Steel buyers have mixed feelings as to where steel prices go from here, with some believing prices have no place to go but up and others looking at the HRC futures market (which is backwardated) […]
SMU’s flat rolled steel Price Momentum Indicator is currently pointing at Neutral meaning sheet steel prices are in transition or have hit a lull. A Neutral reading does not mean flat rolled steel prices will automatically move lower from here just because the previous indication was for higher prices. The injection of the U.S. government […]
Compared to this time last year, flat rolled lead times are highly extended – on all products. Plate lead times, which is not on our graphic, are also highly extended, but we are treating it differently as the domestic mills are on controlled order entry/allocation with their plate customers. Hot rolled lead times are averaging […]
Extended lead times will generally lead to steel mills being stingy about offering “deals” below the company pricing guidelines. Flat rolled steel prices have essentially plateaued. There may be a small number of “deals” out there (is $860 HRC really a “deal?”), but most mills are sticking to their guns. In all four products (hot […]
Global manufacturing started second quarter with a small hop rather than a jump. The JPMorgan Global PMI posted 53.5 in April, up slightly from March’s six-month low of 53.3. “April PMI data signaled a marginal pick-up in the rate of expansion of the global manufacturing sector, the first growth acceleration seen since the turn of […]
Flat rolled and plate steel prices continue to show signs of stability as the market absorbs the most recent decision on Section 232 exclusions (countries) and awaits decisions about individual product exclusions. Steel Market Update continues to reference our SMU Price Momentum Indicator as being at Neutral, but I want to warn our readers that […]
Supply executives report that new orders, production and employment are growing, according to the latest survey by the Institute for Supply Management. The April PMI in the ISM Report on Business registered 57.3, a two-point decline from March. Most of the components of the PMI registered a decrease in percentage points from March, but were […]
Metalforming manufacturers are expecting steady business conditions during the next three months, according to the April 2018 Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report. PMA members, however, are seeing negative impacts from the Section 232 aluminum and steel tariffs. Orders are expected to remain steady in the next few months. Manufacturers said daily shipping levels […]
This should come as no surprise to our readers, the theoretical spread between foreign steel export prices and the SMU hot rolled coil index average is quite large. However, when looking at foreign steel offers on hot rolled (and there are precious few) which range from $820-$840 per ton, according to SMU sources, the spread […]
Reliance Steel & Aluminum reported record sales of $2.47 billion and record shipments of 1.6 million tons in the first quarter of 2018. “The positive pricing and demand fundamentals experienced in the fourth quarter of 2017 continued through the first quarter of 2018, with pricing momentum building throughout the quarter,” said President and CEO Gregg […]
The number of companies – especially service centers – reporting they have been on allocation or controlled order entry has dwindled over the past couple of weeks. Many companies are reporting extended lead times or an abundance of late deliveries, but no full allocations with their suppliers. The one exception being plate companies, where almost […]
The number of companies – especially service centers – reporting they have been on allocation or controlled order entry has dwindled over the past couple of weeks. Many companies are reporting extended lead times or an abundance of late deliveries, but no full allocations with their suppliers. The one exception being plate companies, where almost […]
Were it not for the surprisingly strong steel demand, the price hikes prompted by the Trump administration tariffs would be a disaster, say manufacturers. As it is, the effects of the Section 232 tariffs are proving troublesome for many companies. President Trump is due to announce May 1 whether his 25 percent tariff on steel […]
“Too many plates spinning right now to try and peg a price direction. The wrong tweet at the wrong time could throw all your planning out the window,” said one manufacturing company to Steel Market Update earlier today, explaining his take on the market. Steel buyers are seeing stability in most products with the possible […]
As a group, flat rolled steel buyers are of the opinion that prices on hot rolled, cold rolled and coated products have plateaued over the near term. However, to a person, the buyers are waiting for May 1st to arrive and then see how President Trump, USTR Robert Lighthizer and the Department of Commerce handle […]
We have been struggling with the decision as to when we should make an adjustment to the SMU Price Momentum Indicator. The issue that has been holding us back for the last week or two is the role the government is playing in the steel market, which muddies the water. We have made the decision […]
We have been struggling with the decision as to when we should make an adjustment to the SMU Price Momentum Indicator. The issue that has been holding us back for the last week or two is the role the government is playing in the steel market, which muddies the water. We have made the decision […]
Based on responses to this week’s Steel Market Update flat rolled market trends questionnaire, mill lead times remain extended, but appear to have stabilized a bit in the past month. Mill lead time, which is the amount of time it takes for the domestic mills to produce a new order taken this week, is one […]
Flat rolled steel prices appear to have reached a plateau, at least on a temporary basis, according to steel buyers who reported mill spot pricing to Steel Market Update this week. Don’t let our headline fool you or lull you into complacency–steel mills are firm with their steel price offers and there has been very […]
This should come as no surprise to our readers, the theoretical spread between foreign steel export prices and the SMU hot rolled coil index average is quite large. However, when looking at foreign steel offers on hot rolled (and there are precious few) which range from $840-$880 per ton, according to SMU sources, the spread […]
The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC) steel and financial futures markets was written by Jack Marshall of Crunch Risk LLC. Here is how Jack saw trading over the past week: Steel HR spot prices continued higher this past week with prices reportedly trading in the mid $860’s. Meanwhile, in April thus far, […]
Flat rolled steel prices appear to have hit a lull as prices have remained relatively range-bound compared to last week. Steel Market Update spent the past two days canvassing steel buyers at manufacturing companies, distributors, wholesalers and steel mills. We report on what steel buyers had to say to us in a separate article in […]
Have flat rolled and plate steel prices peaked? Opinions vary widely among Steel Market Update’s sources. We spent all day today working on gathering flat rolled and plate pricing information. In the process, we also collected comments from steel buyers as to whether they felt steel prices have “peaked” or if there is more room […]
Have flat rolled and plate steel prices peaked? Opinions vary widely among Steel Market Update’s sources. We spent all day on Tuesday working on gathering flat rolled and plate pricing information. In the process, we also collected comments from steel buyers as to whether they felt steel prices have “peaked” or if there is more […]
The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC) futures market was written by David Feldstein. As the Flack Global Metals Director of Risk Management, 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 […]
Based on the latest SMU Flat Rolled and Plate Steel Market Trends Survey, mill lead times on flat rolled steel remain highly extended, close to the levels measured by Steel Market Update in mid-2016, as mills scramble to fill orders on strong demand. Mill lead times, which are the amount of time it takes for […]
We are in an unusual situation when it comes to evaluating “spot” pricing. Many active buyers are contract customers and there are very few “sophisticated” buyers actually in the spot market buying flat rolled steel. Plate buyers have told SMU that they are on allocation and there are very few “spot” purchases being made. One […]
Global manufacturing growth in March slowed to its lowest level since October 2017. The J.P. Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI posted 53.4, down from 54.1 in February. Rates of expansion fell in the consumer and intermediate goods sectors, while the investment goods PMI rose to its highest level so far this year. Manufacturing growth eased in […]
Manufacturing activity expanded in March, though at a slower rate than February, reports the Institute for Supply Management. ISM’s March PMI registered 59.3 percent, down from 60.8 percent in the February survey of corporate purchasing managers. Any reading above 50 indicates growth. New orders continued to expand in March, although slowing 2.3 percentage points from […]
Steel price momentum remained on the upswing in March, but steel buyers appeared slightly less optimistic about their prospects as President Trump’s tariffs and fears of a trade war weighed on many minds. The price of benchmark hot roll hit $870 per ton in late March, up $50 per ton from the beginning of the […]