Nucor announced the acquisition of another downstream company, TrueCore, a manufacturer of insulated metal panels for the cold storage market. “This acquisition fits well with our strategy to profitably grow our value-added product portfolio and provides great synergies with Nucor Buildings Group. As the market leader in metal buildings, we currently utilize a high volume […]
By CRU North America Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley, from CRU’s Steel Metallics Monitor The CRU metallics price indicator (CRUmpi) rose by 7.9 percent m/m to 211.1 (see chart) following price increases in nearly every market. Pervasive market tightness caused by adverse weather and higher domestic demand in major exporting markets forced buyers in import-reliant markets to accept higher […]
This Steel Market Update report examines the import share of sheet, plate, long and tubular products and 16 subcategories. Since January, there has only been one month when the import market share of total sheet products exceeded 15 percent. The import share of HRC has been below 10 percent since January. The most striking result […]
By CRU Principal Analyst James Campbell, from CRU’s Long Products Monitor Steel longs prices have changed direction this month with rises now observed in many markets. Although underlying demand has improved in some regions it is still weak elsewhere. Buyers in many regions have restocked in the last month while producers exposed to scrap and […]
November’s licensed import volume of total rolled steel products was the lowest since February 2010. Year over year, total rolled product imports in November were down by 27.4 percent on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis. This follows the 17.7 percent decrease in October and 15.5 percent decline in September on the same basis. This […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Dmitry Popov, from CRU’s Iron Ore Market Outlook After two weeks of increases, iron ore prices moved marginally lower this week by $1 /t w/w as CRU has assessed the 62% Fe fines price at $89 /t, CFR China. The end of the upward momentum in iron ore prices was primarily […]
This report is designed to be a big picture summary of data SMU has reported in detail during the month. It summarizes 36 data streams that describe the state of the steel market and provide forward guidance for steel buyers and sellers. See the end of this piece for an explanation of the Key Indicators […]
In what will be seen as supportive of higher domestic steel prices, ferrous scrap prices are expected to jump by $30 per ton or more in December on tight supplies and improving demand in the U.S., following on a similar increase in November. “Going into December and year end , the U.S. scrap market has […]
SMU contributor Gaurav Chhibbar 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 Gaurav’s previous role, he was a trader at Cargill spending time in […]
By Senior Analyst Manjot Singh, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor The past week was characterized by improving sentiment in the Chinese and Indian steel industry. Chinese HRC and rebar prices increased substantially w/w (see data below) on the back of higher demand. Even the HRC prices in India witnessed a $7 /t increase w/w, […]
Favorable winds are blowing for Nucor Steel in Missouri. The company will start production at its new rebar micro-mill in Sedalia, Mo., by the end of December powered by clean energy provided by Evergy Inc. Evergy has plans to build a windfarm at the Sedalia site that will offset 100 percent of the energy used […]
By Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley, from CRU’s Steel Metallics Monitor The CRU metallics price indicator (CRUmpi) rose by 7.5 percent m/m to 195.7 (see chart) after prices rose in most markets. The most pronounced rebounds were in the U.S. and European scrap markets, while prices in Asia either rose or were stable. Prices in regions […]
By CRU Analyst Alexander Ordosch Last week, Turkish scrap import prices were assessed at $248 /t CFR for HMS 80:20. Only one deal was assessed from Europe, after strong restocking activity over recent weeks. Prices have been rising in recent weeks as sellers have pushed for gains as it had become uneconomic to supply at the lower prices […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley The rate of decline for U.S. domestic longs product prices is decelerating as steel buyers slowly return to the market and scrap market sentiment firms. Although not low, inventory levels have worked through enough for buyers to re-enter the market and conduct seasonal restocking. Still, domestic prices and demand […]
Liberty Steel plans to merge all of its GFG Alliance steel businesses into one global entity—Liberty Steel Group. The consolidation will include GFG’s upstream and downstream steel manufacturing, mining and distribution businesses that encompass 10 countries and 30,000 employees. Liberty Steel Group claims it will be the eighth largest steel producer outside of China with 18 […]
Commercial Metals Company is enjoying the rewards of its purchase of four rebar mills and 33 fabrication facilities from Gerdau. The acquisition added 2.5 million tons of rolling capacity and increased fabrication capacity by almost 50 percent. “The systems integration was flawless and got completed in less than four months, well ahead of schedule,” said […]
By CRU Prices Analyst Estelle Tran U.S. steel sheet prices have fallen faster in early Q4 than initially expected, as lower demand levels, economic uncertainty and another $30-40 /l.ton decrease in scrap prices in October guided steel prices down. The CRU Midwest HR coil price assessment on Oct. 16 was $507 /s.ton, down $64 from […]
By CRU Analysts Chris Bandmann and Alexander Ordosch In response to events in Syria, U.S. President Donald Trump has announced that the U.S. tariffs on Turkish steel imports will be restored to 50 percent, after they had been revised down to 25 percent in May. What are the likely impacts of this decision? Turkish Exports […]
Commercial Metals Co. has shut down the melt shop at its steel rebar mill in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., citing restrictive regulations and low-cost competition. “The burdensome regulatory environment and cost of doing business in California has put the Rancho Cucamonga melt shop at a severe cost disadvantage in the highly competitive rebar market,” said CMC […]
February was the first month for the import market share of total steel products, including semifinished, to fall below 20 percent since August 2009. The import share remained below 20 percent through August 2019 when it was 18.4 percent. Our data goes back to January 2003 in which time period the high import share was […]
Lack of demand for ferrous scrap, especially in the Ohio Valley and Chicago market, forced prices down another $30-40/GT for October, on top of a similar decline in September, sources tell Steel Market Update. Scrap prices are their lowest in years, dropping eight out of the last 10 months. Shred prices today are around $215/GT, […]
By CRU Principal Analyst James Campbell The decline of long product prices accelerated this month as demand in many regions around the world failed to ignite after the seasonally slow July-August period. Prices have now unwound to the level before the 2017-18 boom. Sluggish demand and falling scrap prices have turned sentiment bearish and buying […]
By CRU Analyst Alexander Ordosch After several weeks of steady Turkish scrap, import prices were stable last week at $225 /t CFR for HMS 80:20. We have assessed seven deals totaling about 274 kt, indicating a second week of strong scrap purchasing activity. Turkish scrap import prices have now reached a level that allows Turkish steel mills to export […]
BY CRU Analyst Alexander Ordosch For the week ending Sept. 20, Turkish scrap import prices fell for the seventh consecutive week to $228 /t CFR for HMS 80:20, down $11 /t w/w. We assessed two deals from the UK totaling 37 kt of scrap. The current price is the lowest in the weekly price assessment on record and the lowest level […]
Nucor expects a weaker performance from its steel mills segment in the third quarter due to lower prices for sheet and plate steel. “Although we still see stability in most of the end-use markets that we serve, there has been some softening in automotive, agricultural products and power transmission markets,” said the company in guidance […]
Following on a small $20 increase in August, ferrous scrap prices for September are down $30 to $40 per ton as U.S. mills adjusted to lower demand and planned for upcoming fall shutdowns. “Prices fell this month amid a confluence of factors including ample supply, a weakening export market and mill outages,” reported CRU North […]
Do plans by U.S. mills to add millions of tons of new steelmaking capacity over the next few years make a price-killing supply glut inevitable? That’s a question very much open to debate, as shown by the spirited exchange between three leading analysts during Steel Market Update’s Steel Summit Aug. 28 in Atlanta. Despite some […]
By CRU North America Analyst Ryan McKinley U.S. long product price declines were limited for most products in September after finding support from the scrap market, but downward pressure continues to mount. Even with scrap prices rising by $20 /l.ton in August, persistent price falls throughout the year have yet to spur buyers’ interest amid high […]
The effectiveness of the Trump administration’s Section 232 tariff gets mixed reviews. The 25 percent tariff has contributed to a 13 percent reduction in steel imports this year, easing the competitive pressures on domestic mills. But after an initial spike in steel prices last year, and record earnings by the mills, the price of finished […]
SMU contributor Gaurav Chhibbar 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 Gaurav’s previous role, he was a trader at Cargill spending time in […]