“Blunt force demand trauma.” That is how Ryerson President & CEO Eddie Lehner described the market environment as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. One really can’t use the word “unprecedented” too much when discussing the effects of the pandemic on the economy and industry, said Lehner. Losing 30 percent of demand in 30 days […]
The 2020 SMU Virtual Steel Summit Conference is coming together very nicely. Steel Market Update and our parent company the CRU Group have been working diligently on the agenda for the 2020 SMU Virtual Steel Summit Conference. We have been adding new speakers to the group we already had committed for the live event, and […]
Steel Market Update’s next Community Chat webinar on Wednesday, July 8, will host CRU Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley, who will offer an update on the global ferrous scrap market and answer metallics-related questions from listeners. Ferrous scrap prices began to trade this afternoon with obsolete grades dropping by $20 per gross ton, and prime grades […]
California Steel Industries notified customers on Monday that it will be lowering the extra charge for galvanized coatings due to declines in the market price of zinc. CSI advised customers: “Due to changing zinc costs, our Galvanized Coating Extras have been revised. These changes will be effective beginning with orders placed for August shipment and […]
Contractors Steel, a division of UPG Enterprises, has hired Jim Gould as West Region Sales Manager. In his new role, Gould is responsible for the business development of Contractors Steel’s newest service center location in Phoenix, scheduled to open in the fourth quarter. Gould joins Contractors Steel with more than 30 years of experience in […]
For the second year in a row, Nucor Corp. was recognized as a General Motors Supplier of the Year during a virtual ceremony on June 24. Less than 1 percent of GM’s suppliers receive this award. Nucor remains the only electric arc furnace steelmaker to get this recognition. Supplier of the Year award winners were […]
Today we officially took our SMU Price Momentum Indicator on hot rolled, cold rolled, and galvanized to Lower from Neutral. We are leaving Galvalume and plate at Neutral. We have seen prices slipping over the past few weeks, and we do not see any immediate signs of that trend reversing itself. There will be questions […]
Virtual Summit Networking – better than in real life? The SMU Steel Summit Virtual Conference will have a strong focus on networking, to facilitate business and to give you that human connection. From the minute you enter the virtual venue you’ll be able to see everyone else who is there and can start networking and […]
The Ports of Indiana has been awarded a Marine Highway Grant by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration to develop a steel barge shuttle with Nucor Steel at its Jeffersonville port. The project will allow barge shipments of steel coils from Ghent, Ky., to the Port of Indiana-Jeffersonville. The $778,766 project includes the construction […]
Why leave your employees in the dark? Last week we had one of our member companies upgrade to an Enterprise membership, and they added 429 of their employees to their account. Today, we had a steel mill ask to add another 100 people onto their existing account. From our inception, the goal of Steel Market […]
So, John… What is happening with the SMU Virtual Steel Conference this week? I am happy you asked. We continue to book more attendees as more and more companies are beginning to realize we are trying to create something unique in this age of the COVID-19 pandemic. We are pushing 300 registered attendees, and that […]
Nucor is guiding to better-than-expected second-quarter earnings in the range of $0.10 to $0.15 per diluted share. First-quarter earnings were $0.07 per diluted share and included asset losses related to the mill’s equity method investment in Italy. Nucor’s downstream steel products segment remained strong during the quarter due to resilient demand in nonresidential construction. COVID-19 […]
Commercial Metals Co. navigated through third quarter FY 2020 pandemic challenges with almost no disruption to operations or loss of productivity, achieving net sales of $1.34 billion and earnings of $64.2 million Barbara Smith, chairman of the board, president and CEO, commented, “While the effects of the COVID-19 crisis impacted our business throughout the third […]
I know I speak on this subject a great deal because it is a challenge and an opportunity for the steel industry, and I love challenges. I am counting on you recognizing the opportunities…. When it comes to the SMU Steel Summit Conference there are two keys to our success: 1) quality content and 2) […]
I know I speak on this subject a great deal because it is a challenge and an opportunity for the steel industry, and I love challenges. I am counting on you recognizing the opportunities…. When it comes to the SMU Steel Summit Conference there are two keys to our success: 1) quality content and 2) […]
Flat Rolled = 67.6 Shipping Days of Supply Plate = 61.0 Shipping Days of Supply Flat Rolled Service center flat roll inventories edged down in May, which was consistent with lower on-order volumes seen in April as well as higher shipments in May. Service centers carried 67.6 shipping days of supply at the end of […]
Raw materials prices have seen varying trends in the past month or two as the coronavirus has had varying effects on different commodities in different parts of the world. Iron ore prices have stayed relatively high due to strong demand in China, where COVID-19 restrictions have been eased. Virus-related disruptions to Brazilian mining operations have […]
Nucor’s Plate Mill Group informed customers on Friday that it has raised prices for carbon and alloy plate and heat-treated plate by $40 per ton, effective immediately. Nucor’s move follows a similar announcement by ArcelorMittal USA on Thursday. This is the second round of plate price changes in the past month. SSAB raised its prices […]
ArcelorMittal USA informed customers today that it has raised the spot base price of all carbon, HSLA, alloy, heat treated, and specialty plate products by a minimum of $40 per ton. The increase takes effect immediately. This is the latest change to steel plate prices in the past month. SSAB raised its prices by $40 […]
Both Nucor and Steel Dynamics have revised their galvanized coating extras due to the decline in zinc prices. SMU has done an analysis on the old and new Nucor galvanized extras, provided below. Nucor extras declined by an average of 16 percent. The comparison below shows old and new Steel Dynamics galvanized extras, which declined […]
We had a good webinar with Lewis Leibowitz yesterday (Wednesday). Our next SMU Community Chat webinar will be held next Wednesday, June 10, and our featured guest speaker will be James Banker, Jr., Executive Vice President, NLMK USA. Banker will be the first steel mill to participate in one of our webinars. Jim has a […]
The 2020 SMU Steel Summit Conference will be a virtual conference this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We encourage companies to learn more about how we intend to present valuable information on a wide range of topics of imporance to the greater steel community. We will discuss and forecast steel prices, the economy and […]
The 2020 SMU Steel Summit Conference will be a virtual conference this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is disappointing that we are not able to do a live conference, but we think we are going to provide a solid alternative that will feed your need to interact with multiple companies who buy and sell […]
The 2020 SMU Steel Summit Conference will be a virtual conference this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is disappointing that we are not able to do a live conference, but we think we are going to provide a solid alternative that will feed your need to interact with multiple companies who buy and sell […]
Ferrous scrap prices for Detroit came out late this afternoon. Prime grades (busheling and bundles) were up $10 per gross ton. There was no change to cut grades, and shredded scrap was down $10/GT. On Wednesday, June 3, we will host our 9th SMU Steel Community Chat webinar. We will be discussing trade with trade […]
While it seems counterintuitive given the difficult market conditions and weak demand due to the coronavirus, domestic steelmakers have raised flat rolled prices for the second time this month. Nucor, U.S. Steel, USS-POSCO Industries (UPI), AK Steel and NLMK USA informed customers today that prices for spot orders of hot rolled, cold rolled and coated […]
Following on Monday’s announcement by ArcelorMittal USA and SSAB Americas, Nucor informed customers on Wednesday that it has raised the price of its plate products. Nucor is seeking an additional $50 per ton ($2.50/cwt) on all orders for carbon, alloy and heat-treated plate. The other mills raised their plate price by just $40 per ton ($2.00/cwt). […]
Now more than ever the steel industry must come together to navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic. Steel Market Update hopes to help by promoting a sense of community among producers, distributors, buyers, vendors and their customers. SMU’s Executive newsletter now includes this periodic community news roundup where we report on the human side of the pandemic. […]
U.S. Steel, AK Steel (Cleveland-Cliffs), Nucor, NLMK, ArcelorMittal and UPI all announced price increases today on flat rolled. With the exception of AMUSA, all were +$40/ton. AMUSA provided specific minimum base price guidance of $540 ($27.00.cwt) on hot rolled and $740 ($37.00/cwt) on cold rolled and coated products. Some early comments from various steel service […]
Domestic steelmakers raised the spot price of plate products by $40 per ton yesterday, hoping to stem the slide and capitalize on improving demand as coronavirus restrictions ease and businesses are allowed to gradually reopen. The plate price has been trending downward this year since peaking in January at $710 per ton ($35.50/cwt). Steel Market […]