New orders for US manufactured durable goods fell 2.2%, or $6.0 billion, in February, snapping a four-month rally, according to the Commerce Department. Orders at domestic factories for long-lasting goods fell more than expected last month, while business investment fell for the first time in a year. February’s outcome suggests high inflation and ongoing supply […]
Producer prices rose moderately in February, maintaining a sustained 23-month growth run. Last month the headline index grew by just 0.8%, seasonally adjusted, but was a gain of 10% when compared to the same year-ago period, reports the U.S. Labor Department. Wholesale prices accelerated as steady consumer demand and pandemic-related supply-chain snarls continued to fuel […]
The United States and the United Kingdom have agreed to a deal to ease Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum. The contours of the agreement match what Steel Market Update reported earlier in the day on Tuesday, March 22. “Today’s historic deal is a testament to that ambitious goal and will benefit America’s steel […]
Distributors who sell galvanized steel products have some recent experience at managing purchasing and inventory in a rapidly rising price environment. In their monthly conference call earlier today, members of the Heating, Air-Conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) drew some comparisons between the spike in steel prices prompted by the pandemic last year and the […]
Northbrook, Ill.-based Hilco Global’s subsidiary, Hilco Industrial Acquisitions, B.V, acquired for resale all assets of ThyssenKrupp’s heavy plate rolling mill located in Duisburg-Hüttenheim, Germany. Prior to its shuttering last September, ThyssenKrupp’s rolling mill produced roughly 850,000 metric tons of heavy plate steel, the company said. Besides the rolling mill, the Amsterdam-based asset management and financial […]
The war in Ukraine continues to impact the volatility in steel markets around the world. Here in the United States, we have seen steel buyers coming off the sidelines as they look to protect themselves against the possibility of being short steel. This despite flat-rolled steel inventories being at 2.72 months’ supply at the end […]
North American’s supply-chain problems may be further complicated by a work stoppage of Canadian railway workers beginning Monday. The Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (CP) issued a 72-hour lockout notice to Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), which represents more than 3,000 engineers, conductors and other personnel, in the event the two sides can’t reach a negotiated […]
Business activity in the state of New York waned in March, declining for the first time since the onset of the global pandemic nearly two years ago, according to the Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The headline general business conditions index is now at -11.8 (above the neutral mark of 0), falling 15 points from February’s 3.1, and […]
Northwest Pipe Co. has been selected to manufacture steel water transmission pipe for the Code Talkers Lateral Reaches 12.1 and 12.2 of the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project in northwestern New Mexico. Once complete, the project will convey water from the San Juan River to the eastern section of the Navajo Nation, the southwestern portion of […]
Steel Market Update is hosting several conferences and events over the balance of this year that you won’t want to miss. This includes our flagship conference, the SMU Steel Summit Conference which will be held at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta on Aug. 22-24. We are also conducting several workshops that may be […]
The semiconductor shortage that has hamstrung North American automakers for the better part of two years is still causing production headaches. Stellantis is the latest carmaker to report delays due to the lack of microchips. The Auburn Hills, Mich.-based automaker has extended the downtime at its Belvidere Assembly Plant for a second straight week, a company […]
In his remarks during Wednesday’s Community Chat, Johnny Sjöström, the top executive at SSAB Special Steels, suggested that the fighting in Ukraine will make nations more gun-shy about becoming too dependent on their foreign trading partners. Nations in Europe and many other parts of the world are scrambling to maintain production without the exports of […]
Registrations for this summer’s 2022 SMU Steel Summit are already picking up as we will offer another strong program focusing on the issues impacting decisions your company will need to make as it moves into the fourth quarter and 2023. Attendance is projected at approximately 1,200 executives from manufacturing, distribution, trading, steel mills, toll processors, logistics companies, […]
President Biden strengthened “Buy American” provisions for government procurement with his signature Friday on new rules that will increase the threshold for the value of products to be considered American-made from the current 55% to 65% by 2024 and 75% by 2029. Proponents consider this a positive development for manufacturing and job-creation in the U.S., […]
AZZ Inc. has agreed to purchase Precoat Metals from its parent, Sequa Corp., for approximately $1.28 billion. The deal continues the Fort Worth, Texas-based company’s buying spree in the coated metals space. “We are pleased to acquire North America’s largest independent provider of metal coil coatings and related services,” AZZ CEO Tom Ferguson said. “Through this acquisition, AZZ […]
Steel Market Update is pleased to share this Premium content with Executive members. For information on upgrading to a Premium-level subscription, email Info@SteelMarketUpdate.com. The value of U.S. steel product shipments was virtually unchanged in January at $12.320 billion or 0.1% above December’s total. Though negligible, the increase follows declines over the prior two months after […]
The global chip shortage continues to dog North American auto assembly plants more than a year after the issue first resulted in widespread production outages. Among the automakers impacted this week are Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford Motor Co. and Stellantis, the European parent company of Auburn Hills, Mich.-based Chrysler. Chrysler’s Belvidere, Ill., assembly plant – which makes […]
The U.S. labor market exceeded expectations in February, adding 678,000 new jobs last month. It was the best month for job growth since last July, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. The U.S. still has 2.1 million jobs to go before hitting the February 2020 level and recouping all positions lost in the pandemic. […]
U.S. construction spending in January totaled $1.68 trillion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, boosted 1.3% by strong outlays on single-family homebuilding and private nonresidential structures, the Commerce Department reported. The gain is even more significant given December data was revised higher to show construction outlays rising 0.8% instead of 0.2% as previously reported. January’s […]
The U.S. economy has expanded at a modest pace since mid-January, the Federal Reserve said in its latest Beige Book report. Overall growth was constrained by a surge in Omicron, forcing firms to deal with heightened absenteeism and continued supply-chain bottlenecks. Consumer spending was weaker, with auto sales largely mixed and manufacturing activity expanding at […]
The war in Eastern Europe is hitting close to home for some steel buyers. Steel Market Update’s survey this week asked readers: How might the Russian invasion of Ukraine impact your business? Roughly three out of four of the service center and manufacturing executives who responded said they fear at least some fallout from the […]
Construction spending rose in January with strong gains in private nonresidential and residential construction, but mixed results for public spending, reported the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). “Private nonresidential construction, especially for manufacturing plants, has rebounded sharply in recent months, while demand for housing remains strong,” said Ken Simonson, AGC’s chief economist. “But public […]
U.S. manufacturing activity grew in February amid stronger demand and easing supply disruptions, according to the latest U.S. Manufacturing PMI data from IHS Markit. The report noted that the strong improvement in operating conditions was driven by the sharpest expansion in new orders since last October. Stronger new sales growth spurred manufacturers to increase staffing […]
Sentiment among purchasing managers surveyed by the Institute for Supply Management remains strongly optimistic, showing growth last month following a small dip in January. February’s Manufacturing PMI edged up to a reading of 58.6% versus 57.6% the month prior. The index reading above 50% indicates growth in the manufacturing sector, thus February’s measure marks the […]
By CRU Multi Commodity Analyst Alex Christopher and Research Analyst James Mills, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor, March 3 The sanctions imposed on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine will have direct and indirect implications for commodity markets, and their impact will be felt by everyone involved along the length of commodity value chains. […]
If you look at Steel Market Update’s headlines from the past week, it’s not difficult to see a common thread. There’s change in the wind. Cleveland-Cliffs and Nucor both announced $50-per-ton increases in sheet prices. Scrap experts forecast substantial jumps in both prime and obsolete scrap prices in March. Prices for other steelmaking raw materials […]
New orders for U.S. manufactured durable goods rose 1.6% in January, doubling earlier estimates of 0.8%, according to the Commerce Department’s report. The surprising gain came following an upward revision in December’s totals to a 1.2% gain from the prior estimate of 0.7% and represents an increase in eight of the last nine months. The […]
The next three months remain favorable for metalforming companies, though widespread supply shortages and other challenges continue, according to the February 2022 Precision Metalforming Business Conditions Report. There was little change in this month’s forecast for business conditions. Only 10% of companies predict a decrease in economic activity during the period, up slightly from 7% […]
Some North American flat-rolled steelmakers were silent when asked what the impact of the conflict between the U.S. and Russia might be on their operations. Others said their supply lines weren’t in the crossfire. One reason for the silence in some corners: Many rely heavily either on Russian slab or Russian or Ukrainian pig iron […]
By CRU Multi Commodity Analyst Alex Christopher and Research Analyst James Mills, from CRU’s Steel Monitor, Feb. 17 The only certainty about the heightened state of East-West relations playing out over Ukraine is that the stakes are high. The gulf between Russian security concerns and guiding principles of NATO, the EU, and western liberalism are […]