EVRAZ North America increased third quarter crude steel production 5.7 percent to prepare for scheduled maintenance outages at its Regina and Pueblo mills. Regina will be out for three weeks for upgrades to the steelmaking and rolling mills while Pueblo is scheduled for a two week maintenance outage. Flat rolled production dropped 25.7 percent in […]
Please see the end of this report for an explanation of data sources. The Broad Index value of the US $ is reported several days in arrears by the Federal Reserve, the latest value we have was dated October 7th, Figure 1. The dollar has lacked direction since early May as traders have correctly anticipated […]
The prices of oil and natural gas drive the consumption of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) and related steel products. The energy markets represent a large portion of the hot rolled coil used to make pipe and tube as well as equipment used to drill and pump oil and natural gas. On October 14th Economy.com […]
On Friday this week the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its series of producer price indexes, for more than 10,000 goods and materials. For an explanation of this program see the end of this piece. The latest release this week reported results through September. We run this analysis every three or four months to […]
In September net job creation was 156,000 July was revised down by 23,000 and August revised up by 16,000. Using a 3MMA, the result for September was 192,000 down from 230,000 in August. Figure 1 shows the 3MMA of the number of jobs created as the brown bars since 1990. These numbers are seasonally adjusted […]
The World Steel Association (worldsteel) released its Short Range Outlook for 2016 and 2017. According to the new report, global steel demand will increase by 0.2 percent to 1,501 million tonnes in 2016. Steel demand contracted by 3.0 percent in 2015. The 2017 forecast is for global steel demand to grow 0.5 percent to 1,510 […]
According to Baker Hughes data from October 7, 2016, the U.S rig count for the week was 524 rigs exploring for or developing oil or natural gas. This is up 2 rigs compared to last week, with oil rigs up 3 to 428 rigs, gas rigs down 2 to 94 rigs, and miscellaneous rigs up […]
Each month the Commerce Department issues its Construction Put in Place (CPIP) data, usually on the first working day covering activity two months earlier. August data for CPIP was released on Monday October 3rd. Overall this was a disappointing report with the growth of total construction having declined for five consecutive months and continuing to […]
We include here an unabridged statement from the IMF that was released on Tuesday this week which forecasts economic growth for all regions and nations through 2021. The IMF reduced its forecast for economic growth in the US in 2016 from 2.4 percent in the April forecast to 1.68 percent and in 2017 from 2.5 […]
Construction sector recovery may be at a plateau, says Stephen Sandherr , CEO of the Associated General Contractors of America. The press release from AGC for August construction spending follows: Construction spending held steady in August compared to July but is up nearly five percent for the first eight months of the year compared to […]
The Manufacturing ISM Report on Business showed manufacturing expanding in September after contracting in August. The Institute for Supply Management reports the September PMI was 51.5 percent, up 2.1 percent from the previous month. New orders, production and employment gained 6, 3.2 and 1.4 percentage points, respectively. The index for inventories of raw materials rose […]
Virgin Atlantic and LanzaTech are experimenting with a new jet fuel made from waste industrial gases from steel mills. Lanzanol, a low carbon ethanol fuel is derived via a fermentation process from carbon monoxide gases produced during steel manufacturing. The alcohol-to-jet process was developed in collaboration with the Pacific Northwest National Lab (PNNL) with support […]
Ryerson Holding Corp., a leading distributor and processor of metals, provided guidance for its third quarter ending September 30, 2016. The Company expects third quarter 2016 net income in the range of $8 million to $12 million and adjusted EBITDA, excluding LIFO in the range of $46 million to $50 million. In Q3 2015, Ryerson […]
According to Baker Hughes data from September 30, 2016, the U.S rig count for the week was 522 rigs exploring for or developing oil or natural gas. This is up 11 rigs compared to last week, with oil rigs up 7 to 425 rigs, gas rigs up 4 to 96 rigs, and miscellaneous rigs unchanged […]
Worthington Industries delivered record earnings in the first quarter of FY 2017 (ending August 31, 2016). Net sales totaled $737.5 million for net earnings of $65.6 million. Gross margin increased $34.3 million year-over-year to $147.3 million primarily due to inventory holding gains of $17 million in Steel Processing which were partly offset by lower volume […]
According to Baker Hughes data from September 23, 2016, the U.S rig count for the week was 511 rigs exploring for or developing oil or natural gas. This is up 5 rigs compared to last week, with oil rigs up 2 to 418 rigs, gas rigs up 3 to 92 rigs, and miscellaneous rigs unchanged […]
Tenaris is recalling workers to its Tenaris Algoma Tubes factory in Sault Ste. Marie. The facility which make seamless pipe for the oil and gas industry has been idle since February 8 due to continued adverse market conditions in the energy sector. Tenaris Algoma Tubes said it will recall 120-150 employees and restart production in […]
Below is the latest release issued by the the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) regarding residential and commercial heating and cooling equipment shipments through July 2016. You may read the press release on their website here. Residential Storage Water Heaters U.S. shipments of residential gas storage water heaters for July 2016 increased 3.0 percent […]
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 […]
MID-SHIP Group expressed optimism in its first report of the fall season. The Sept. 8 MID-SHIP Report said the group is “cautiously optimistic” about better dry bulk shipping demand in the second half of 2016. Oversupply of vessels continues to be a problem but as the seasonal grain shipments begin late in September demand should […]
The price of oil and natural gas have much to do with sales of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) and related steel products. The energy markets represent a large portion of the hot rolled coil used to make pipe and tube, storage facilities as well as equipment used to drill and pump oil and natural […]
The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) introduced a new data set for GDP by state and region last year and back dated it to Q1 2005. On Tuesday this week the data was updated through Q1 2016. Even though we might consider this to be historically ‘old’ we think it’s worth reporting because it is […]
According to Baker Hughes data from September 9, 2016, the U.S rig count for the week was 508 rigs exploring for or developing oil or natural gas. This is up 11 rigs compared to last week, with oil rigs up 7 to 414 rigs, gas rigs up 4 to 92 rigs, and miscellaneous rigs unchanged […]
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 […]
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 […]
The Federal Reserve Open Market Committee met on Friday, an event closely watched by currency traders around the world as they try to anticipate the Fed’s future interest rate activity. AllianceBernstein (AB) had this to say on Saturday. While Yellen’s main focus in Wyoming was on the tools needed to ensure a resilient monetary policy […]
According to Baker Hughes data from August 26, 2016, the U.S rig count for the week was 489 rigs exploring for or developing oil or natural gas. This is down 2 rigs compared to last week, with oil rigs unchanged at 406 rigs, gas rigs down 2 to 81 rigs, and miscellaneous rigs unchanged at […]
The prices for flat rolled steel have dropped over the past few weeks which is creating a situation where the domestic steel mills want to recoup a portion (or all) of the reductions by negotiating lower ferrous scrap pricing. The mills are asking for $20 per gross ton across the board (HMS, shred, prime grades) […]
According to Baker Hughes data from August 19, 2016, the U.S rig count for the week was 491 rigs exploring for or developing oil or natural gas. This is up 10 rigs compared to last week, with oil rigs up 10 to 406 rigs, gas rigs unchanged at 83 rigs, and miscellaneous rigs unchanged at […]
Below is the latest release issued by the the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) regarding residential and commercial heating and cooling equipment shipments through June 2016. You may read the press release on their website here. Residential Storage Water Heaters U.S. shipments of residential gas storage water heaters for June 2016 decreased 12.5 percent […]