The Empire State Manufacturing Index remained below the zero “no growth” level at -2.0 in September for the second consecutive month. Analysts point to weak export orders and sluggish business investment by the manufacturing sector. New orders dropped eight points to -7.5 and shipments plunged 18 points to -9.4. Indexes for unfilled orders and delivery […]
Both these data points are reported in the Federal Reserve G17 data base. The index had an all-time high of 106.70 in November 2014 and trended down until June this year when it experienced a two month turnaround followed by a slight decline in August to 104.402. The three month moving average (3MMA) had positive […]
Manufacturing activity improved in the Philadelphia area in September according to the latest manufacturing Business Outlook Survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. General activity and new orders expanded, surprising economists who expected a flat reading for the month. The headline index increased 11 points to 12.8, marking the first time the index has […]
The uncertainty in the market (called the “blahs” by a number of our steel sources) is affecting both buyers and sellers of steel. Steel mills have been doing all that they can in an attempt to keep flat rolled steel prices from slipping too far. One of our mill sources had a sense of humor […]
Twice per month, Steel Market Update (SMU) conducts a review of the flat rolled steel market in our quest to better understand market trends which affect steel pricing and purchasing. We invite approximately 550-600 steel people to participate in our questionnaires. Those invited come from the manufacturing segment of the industry (approximately 45 to 50 […]
Manufacturing companies and steel service centers concur about the status of spot steel pricing out of the service centers, spot flat rolled steel prices are dropping. Manufacturing companies reported rising spot prices during the entire second quarter and very early in the third quarter. We saw spot pricing out of the distributors begin to wane […]
The Congressional Steel Caucus introduced a House resolution last week that calls for the Administration to take action regarding non-market economy (NME) countries to protect U.S. manufacturing jobs and economic security. Chairman Tim Murphy (R-Pa) and Vice-chairman Peter J. Visclosky (D-IN) introduced the bill, along with 23 bipartisan cosponsors, that addresses market-distorting policies and subsidization […]
This month as we contemplate the August job creation performance we will lead off with the thoughts of J.G. Collins managing director of the Stuyvesant Square Consultancy. On September 2nd he wrote: The August jobs report released this morning was full of disappointment, with just 151,000 jobs created. Higher wage occupations continued to shed jobs […]
The SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index has been showing signs of a rebound as our Current Index is being released as +63 this week. This is a +2 point improvement from the middle of August and +5 point improvement since the beginning of August. However, SMU prefers to look at our Current and Future Sentiment […]
Global manufacturing continued to grow in August although falling from an eight-month high of 51.0 in July to 50.8 in August. Growth was sluggish in developed markets but improved in emerging markets. Of the 28 countries surveyed in the JP Morgan Global PMI, only nine reported worsening conditions in August. Manufacturers in China reported no […]
Mark Bula, the Commercial Director for Big River Steel made it official at our 6th Steel Summit Conference proclaiming Big River Steel as “open for business.” Bula, who was speaking on a panel on Innovation and the future of the steel industry, reported that the mill will begin producing their first hot rolled coil for […]
Manufacturing contracted in August after five consecutive months of growth, according to the latest Manufacturing Report on Business from the Institute of Supply Management. ISM reported the August PMI at 49.4, down 3.2 points from July at 52.6 percent. It was the first time the index has slipped since February of this year. New orders […]
Business activity fell in the Chicago area in August. The MNI Chicago Business Barometer, or Chicago PMI as commonly called, dropped 4.3 points to register 51.5. The decline was steeper than expected by economists. “Economic activity slowed down into the summer, suggesting June’s momentum was only a temporary revival in activity. Overall, it wasn’t a […]
An explanation of the Key Indicators concept is given at the end of this piece for those readers who are unfamiliar with it. This will explain the difference between our view of the present situation which is subjective and our analysis of trends which is based on the latest facts available. At the end of […]
Lewis Leibowitz opened the 6th Steel Summit in Atlanta, GA with a recap of what is happening in the trade regulation of steel imports. In a quick poll preceding the presentation, the audience by a 53 percent to 47 percent vote said they were in favor of dumping suits. An overwhelming 97 percent said they […]
Durable goods orders gained 4.4 percent in July following two months of declines, according to the latest report by the Commerce Department. The rebound was led by a surge in commercial aircraft orders which soared 90 percent after a 50 percent tumble in June. Nearly all categories comprising the new orders index showed increases in […]
Manufacturing activity in the Fifth District was weaker in August according to the most recent survey by The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. The composite manufacturing index for August plummeted to -11 after July’s reading of +10. Shipments fell sharply losing 21 points for an index reading of -14, while the new orders index plunged […]
Economic growth increased for a second consecutive month in July according to the Chicago Fed National Activity Index (CFNAI). The index is a gauge of economic activity and inflation and is expressed by three separate index values: the CFNAI and two 3-month moving average indexes, the CFNAI-MA3 and CFNAI Diffusion Index. The 3-month averages help […]
Last week Steel Market Update conducted our mid-August flat rolled steel market trends analysis. For those new to our newsletter, we invite approximately 600 people representing about 550 companies to participate in our bi-monthly questionnaire. Our normal response rate is 100 to 150 people. Last week’s mix was 44 percent service centers, 43 percent manufacturing […]
SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index Twice per month, Steel Market Update surveys the flat rolled steel industry. One of the proprietary products which is derived from that expansive survey is the SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index. Sentiment is defined as how buyers and sellers feel about their company’s ability to be successful both in the […]
On Wednesday of this week HARDI hosted their monthly steel conference call. Steel Market Update participates in these calls which are dedicated to a better understanding of the galvanized steel market. The participants are wholesalers, service centers and manufacturing companies who either buy or sell galvanized sheet products used in the HVAC industry. SMU advised […]
We are 10 days away from the start of our Steel Summit Conference in Atlanta. This will be our 6th conference and it will be the best attended conference by a wide margin. When we began the planning process my most optimistic goal was to get 400 attendees. We had 280 attendees at our 5th […]
Business activity declined in the New York State area as reported by firms in the August 2016 Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline PMI for general business conditions fell for a second month, losing five points to register -4.21. New orders were essentially unchanged at a reading near zero of 1.04. Shipments rose eight points […]
At SMU we almost always use three month moving averages to mitigate situations like the dismal and not credible May job creation statistics. In the July report May was revised up slightly from 11,000 to 24,000 and June was revised up from 287,000 to 292,000. This week’s report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported […]
Ryerson Holding Corp, a leading metals distributor and processor, reported net income of $5.6 million for second quarter 2016. Sales of $739.8 million declined 12 percent year over year due to lower average selling price, but increased 5.3 percent from Q1. Tons shipped increased 3.5 percent. Ryerson expects manufacturing growth to remain slow in the […]
Mexican steel association CANACERO welcomed antidumping duties placed on galvanized sheet steel and wire rod imported from China and Taiwan. The Mexican Ministry of Economy placed duties of up to USD$0.563 per kilogram on galvanized sheet from China and Taiwan and USD$0.49 per kilogram on wire rod from China. Said CANACERO in a statement: “Unfair […]
Steel Market Update speaks with dozens of companies on a daily basis and hundreds over the course of a week. We also receive a large number of emails, facebook and LinkedIn posts. Every so often we like to share some of the comments being made in an article we call “Bits ‘N Pieces.” We learned […]
PITTSBURGH, AUGUST 10, 2016 – Esmark Steel Group, one of the nation’s largest processors and distributors of flat-rolled steel, steel fabrication manufacturing and tinplate production, today announced that Michael Ogrizovich, currently President of Esmark Steel Group, has been named a Director to the company’s Board of Directors and been promoted to Vice Chairman of Mill […]
The hot rolled announcement has been made and the market is sifting through the results in order to figure out whether the results are good or bad for the steel industry. Of course, the answer to that question depends on what your end motivation is. Lower prices are good for manufacturing but bad for the […]
Ontario Steel Investments Limited (Ontario Steelworks) said on Tuesday that it has submitted a bid to buy US Steel Canada. The August 5th offer includes the assumption of the US Steel Canada pension plan, currently estimated at C$954 million ($724 million) and a commitment to provide C$25 million per year for post-employment benefits for current […]