Allegheny Technologies, Inc., posted a net loss of $422.6 million for the second quarter, but feels poised to emerge from the COVID-19 crisis stronger than ever. Revenue slipped 26 percent year-over-year to $770 million. ATI generated between $140 million and $160 million in cost reductions through efficiency measures, right-sizing workforce and reducing working capital. The […]
U.S. production of crude oil decreased in May by 1.99 million barrels per day (b/d), the largest monthly decrease since at least January 1980, according to the latest data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. May marks the sixth consecutive monthly decrease in crude oil production and is the third month since March when the […]
Active U.S and Canadian gas and oil rigs were flat to up this past week, according to oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The active drill rigs count is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of oil country tubular goods demand. The number of active U.S. rigs remained steady at 251, […]
SMU contributor Tim Stevenson is a partner at Metal Edge Partners, a firm engaged in Risk Management and Strategic Advisory. In this role, he and his firm design and execute risk management strategies for clients along with providing process and analytical support. In Tim’s previous role, he was a Director at Cargill Risk Management, and […]
Metals processor and distributor Ryerson Holding Corp. recorded revenue of $772 million for the second quarter of 2020, a plunge of 35.9 percent from a year ago and 23.6 percent sequentially. Shipments fell 25.8 percent to 462,000 tons. Average selling price declined 13.6 percent to $1,671 per ton. The company reduced warehousing, delivery, general and […]
Join us for CRU’s free economic outlook webinar, where CRU experts will answer your questions about the impact of Covid-19 on the global economy. Tuesday Aug. 4, 2020 Session I – 8:00 AM BST (3:00 PM CST)Session II – 10:00 AM EDT (3:00 PM BST) Topics discussed Key phases of the Covid-19 downturn and recovery […]
Nucor surprised analysts with earnings significantly higher than expected for the second quarter of 2020. Earnings for Q2 totaled $108.9 million or $0.36 per diluted share despite Nucor’s own guidance for $0.10-0.15 per share and analyst forecasts of $0.12 to $0.14. The company admits poor forecasting ability resulted in the welcome discrepancy, along with strategic […]
Editor’s note: SMU Contributor David Feldstein is president of Rock Trading Advisors. David has over 20 years of financial market trading experience and has been active in the ferrous futures space for eight years. David earned an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business with concentrations in economics, statistics and analytical finance. […]
The multi-month decline in active U.S and Canadian gas and oil rigs seems to have flattened out, according to oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The active drill rigs count is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of oil country tubular goods demand. The number of active U.S. rigs fell by […]
By CRU Analysts Irina Melkonyan and Iris Speelmanns, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Market Outlook Russia is among the biggest steel exporters in the world, delivering to a wide range of destinations. However, steel demand in all regions diminished as the world was hit by Covid-19 and most steel producers globally have struggled. Unlike steelmakers […]
By CRU Chief Economist Jumana Saleheen, from the Steel Sheet Products Market Outlook There is widespread agreement that the dollar is overvalued by around 10 percent. CRU expects the trade weighted dollar (TW$) to remain overvalued and broadly stable for the rest of 2020, as pandemic uncertainty continues to support the dollar as a “safe-haven” […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: The Trump administration’s trade policies make for interesting reading; but the results of those policies are, if anything, more interesting. Tariffs are the hallmark of the Trump presidency, especially the Section 301 tariffs on China and the Section […]
The Department of Commerce has initiated an investigation to determine if seamless carbon and alloy steel standard, line and pressure pipe from the Czech Republic, Korea, Russia and Ukraine is being sold at less than fair value in the U.S. market and whether such pipe is being subsidized by the governments of Korea and Russia. […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Erik Hedborg and Prices Analyst Rory Knight In the past four weeks, freight rates have nearly doubled as Brazilian iron ore shipments have increased while an increasing proportion of global exports are being shipped to distant markets, reducing fleet availability. This is benefiting European steelmakers, while hurting iron ore miners, particularly […]
The U.S. economy added 4.8 million jobs in June, exceeding analysts’ expectations once again, according to data released Thursday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. May’s job gain was revised up by 160,000 to 2,699,000. Figure 1 shows the total number of nonfarm workers in the U.S. since 1990. The net loss since February’s all-time […]
By CRU Senior Analysts Ryan Smith and Andrew Gadd, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor Oil markets have had a torrid 2020, with the combination of demand losses due to Covid-19 and the breakdown of coordination between major producing countries resulting in plummeting prices. In this Insight, we assess how this oil price shock influences […]
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports that recent declines in demand for petroleum products have led commercial crude oil inventories in the United States to reach an all-time high of 541 million barrels as of the week ending June 19, which is 5 million barrels more than the previous record set in late March […]
Worthington Industries faced a challenging quarter as stay-at-home orders and closure of nonessential businesses impacted the markets it serves. Demand levels fluctuated depending on the market with company conditions normal in March, break even in April and profitable in May, albeit at lower levels. Although the economic outlook is still unclear, Worthington expects a return to […]
By CRU Senior Cost Economist Ross Cunningham, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor The Brent crude price is often deemed a bellwether for the global economy. A high oil price increases inflation and impacts economic growth. It influences global confidence, affects investment decisions and weighs on exchange rates—particularly those of large oil exporters. In the […]
By CRU Prices Analyst Estelle Tran, from CRU’s Global Steel Trade Service U.S. automaker restarts in May drove an increase in steel demand and helped to prop up sheet prices. There is concern, however, over whether there is enough new demand to support mills restarting or if manufacturers are mainly managing pent-up demand. We’ve heard […]
Active U.S and Canadian gas and oil rigs declined again this past week, according to oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The active drill rigs count is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of oil country tubular goods demand. The number of active U.S. rigs fell by 13 to 266, with […]
The multi-month decline in active U.S and Canadian gas and oil rigs seems to have flattened out, according to oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The active drill rigs count is important to the steel industry because it is a leading indicator of oil country tubular goods demand. The number of active U.S. rigs fell by […]
U.S. Steel anticipates the second quarter will “mark the trough for the year.” In earnings guidance issued on June 17, the company said it expects an adjusted EBITDA loss of $315 million, exclusive of approximately $100 million of estimated restructuring and other charges. The guidance was significantly lower than analyst consensus and nearly five times […]
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 […]
From a steel buyer’s perspective, the environment is relatively competitive now. Mills and service centers are hungry for business, said Donald Bly, managing director of Applied Value, during Wednesday’s SMU Community Chat Webinar. Mill capacity utilization is down to about 53 percent, but still better than the 2008-2009 recession, he said. “It’s a good time […]
The term “sustainability” is most often associated with environmentalism. True to the word, U.S. Steel’s 2019 Sustainability Report details the steelmaker’s mission to reduce its global greenhouse gas (GHG) emission intensity by 20 percent over the next decade. But what makes a company’s success “sustainable” over the long term goes far beyond environmental considerations, said […]
Markets are vastly improved from where they were two months ago, said James Banker, Executive Vice President of NLMK USA, during Steel Market Update’s Community Chat on Wednesday. Conditions seem good, mostly because they are coming off a “really awful period,” he said. NLMK USA relies on its customers for information about the market, and […]
EVRAZ NA will reduce its workforce by an additional 65 employees at EVRAZ Oregon Steel as operations are idled in response to weak demand due to the coronavirus. In a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification to the state of Oregon, EVRAZ said it “has experienced a significant business downturn” and will permanently reduce the workforce […]
The World Steel Association (worldsteel) expects steel demand to contract by 5.4 percent in 2020 to 1.654 billion metric tons. The latest Short Range Outlook forecasts a recovery to 1.717 billion tons in 2021, a 3.8 percent increase over this year. Commenting on the outlook, Chairman of the worldsteel Economics Committee Al Remeithi said: “The […]
Editor’s note: SMU Contributor David Feldstein is president of Rock Trading Advisors. David has over 20 years of financial market trading experience and has been active in the ferrous futures space for eight years. David earned an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business with concentrations in economics, statistics and analytical finance. Since […]