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 […]
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 […]
Flat rolled steel price momentum, for spot pricing out of the domestic mills, continues to be in transition, and the SMU Price Momentum Indicator is at Neutral. Neutral means spot mill pricing could go in either direction over the next 30 days. However, SMU and our parent company CRU have both been reporting lower spot […]
Flat rolled steel price momentum, for spot pricing out of the domestic mills, continues to be in transition, and the SMU Price Momentum Indicator is at Neutral. Neutral means spot mill pricing could go in either direction over the next 30 days. However, SMU and our parent company CRU have both been reporting lower spot […]
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 […]
Steel Market Update’s canvass of the market this week shows hot rolled and galvanized steel prices down about $15 a ton, though plate is up about $10 a ton following last week’s price increase announcements by the mills. Prices have yet to gain much traction even though demand has improved as coronavirus restrictions have been […]
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 […]
Flat Rolled = 62.5 Shipping Days of Supply Plate = 58.7 Shipping Days of Supply Flat Rolled Service centers reduced their flat rolled supply to 62.5 shipping days of supply at the end of June, from 67.6, according to adjusted data. In terms of months on hand, June inventories represented 2.84 months of supply, down […]
It’s time to register for CRU’s 5th Annual New York Steel Briefing. The event, now virtual due to the coronavirus, will feature CRU analysts sharing their outlooks for steel and how to manage through volatile markets. Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2020 Time: 10:00 – 11:00 AM EST Overview: The Covid-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented disruption across domestic […]
It’s not too late to register for CRU’s 5th Annual New York Steel Briefing. The event, now virtual due to the coronavirus, will feature CRU analysts sharing their outlooks for steel and how to manage through volatile markets. Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2020 Time: 10:00 – 11:00 AM EST Overview: The Covid-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented disruption […]
Steel demand is on the upswing three months after being decimated by government orders to shut down nonessential businesses and stop the spread of COVID-19. The majority of steel buyers (53 percent) responding to Steel Market update’s market trends questionnaire this past week said they are seeing improvement in demand for their products. Another 38 […]
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 […]
By CRU Prices Analyst George Pearson, from CRU’s Steel Monitor In the U.S. Midwest market this week, sheet prices were somewhat mixed with HR coil near steady w/w while HDG coil fell by $19 /s.ton to $650 /s.ton and CR coil inched up by $4 /s.ton to $697 /s.ton. Our full HDG coil price, reflecting […]
It’s time to register for CRU’s 5th Annual New York Steel Briefing. The event, now virtual due to the coronavirus, will feature CRU analysts sharing their outlooks for steel and how to manage through volatile markets. Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2020 Time: 10:00 – 11:00 AM EST Overview: The Covid-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented disruption across domestic […]
Every other week Steel Market Update conducts an analysis of the flat rolled and plate steel market trends. This is done via a comprehensive questionnaire, invitations for which are sent to more than 600 individuals representing more than 550 companies. We intentionally weight the invitations heavily to individuals from manufacturing and steel service centers. Combined […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled and plate steels have extended in the past four weeks as demand has picked up and mill production has come down. In response to the COVID-19 shutdowns of nonessential businesses in March, steel producers idled furnaces to sync their output with demand. Lengthening lead times this week […]
After a brief period in which the mills tried to hold the line following their price increase announcements in May, negotiations have swung once again in buyers’ favor. Seven out of 10 buyers responding to Steel Market Update’s questionnaire this week said the mills are willing to negotiate on price to win orders of hot […]
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 […]
United States steel exports slumped to a 21-year low in April, down 39 percent from March and down 33 percent from one year prior, according to recent U.S. Department of Commerce data. April steel exports totaled 403,949 net tons, just a hair above the December 1998 low. Recall that March export levels were at a five-month […]
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 […]
Steel prices have been clawing their way back since hot rolled hit a low of $460 per ton in late April, moving up by $10 in the past week and recovering roughly $55 over the past five weeks to the current $515 per ton. The mills have managed to collect some, but certainly not all, […]
Join us for CRU’s 5th Annual New York Steel Briefing, now virtual, featuring the outlook for steel and how to manage through volatile markets. Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2020 Time: 10:00 – 11:00 AM EST Overview: The Covid-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented disruption across domestic and global commodity markets, with steel among those most impacted. With scenarios for a post-pandemic outlook […]
Imports of rolled products through May, year over year, were not affected by the pandemic, but the longer-term decline continued, according to the latest Commerce Department data. Year over year, total rolled product imports in May were down by 24.8 percent on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis. This was the seventh consecutive month where […]
There is much to discuss, much to learn… As trade attorney Lewis Leibowitz lays out in his article/opinion piece this evening, there are no easy solutions to issues built over decades. International manufacturing companies need to review their supply chains to ensure they are not doing business in countries potentially hostile to the United States. […]
By CRU Prices Analyst George Pearson, from CRU’s Steel Monitor Sheet prices in the U.S. Midwest market have continued to rise with HR coil assessed at $510 /s.ton, a w/w gain of $23 /s.ton. While prices are higher, overall volume of transactions has been limited. This is due not only to low demand and plentiful […]
Join us for CRU’s 5th Annual New York Steel Briefing, now virtual, featuring the outlook for steel and how to manage through volatile markets. Date: Tuesday, June 23, 2020 Time: 10:00 – 11:00 AM EST Overview: The Covid-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented disruption across domestic and global commodity markets, with steel among those most impacted. With scenarios for a post-pandemic outlook […]
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 […]