Steel prices have been on an upward trajectory since October, but are likely to change direction by this summer, predicts John Anton, director of steel analytics for IHS Markit. Anton is scheduled to make another appearance as a panelist at Steel Market Update’s premier event, the 2018 Steel Summit Conference, set for Aug. 27-29 at […]
The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC) steel and financial futures markets was written by Jack Marshall of Crunch Risk LLC. Here is how Jack saw trading over the past week: Steel The HR futures prices continue to grind higher in the near dates but have been lagging in the latter half of […]
Total rolled steel imports declined by 15 percent in the three months through January compared to the previous three-month period, August through October. Sheet product imports declined by 17.3 percent on the same basis, according to Steel Market Update’s analysis of U.S. Department of Commerce data released Feb. 6. The data is reported within the […]
The Chinese government is changing the accounting procedures at both banks and the companies they loan money to, saying there can no longer be two sets of books. Steel Market Update has learned from one of our trading sources inside of China that the latest hot rolled price, Ex-Works (FOB Mill) for ASTM A36 in […]
Gerdau SA is divesting its Beaumont, Texas, wire rod mill and two downstream operations, Beaumont Wire Products and Carrollton Wire Products, to reduce its footprint in the U.S. long products market. Optimus Steel LLC will acquire the facilities for $92.5 million in a deal to close by the end of the year. The sale is […]
Steel Market Update publisher, John Packard, traded comments with a financial analysts who was of the opinion that demand was under duress and the future of the steel using markets was in doubt. This does not match our belief based on a review of the SMU Key Market Indicators. We are sharing this report with […]
In its year-end 2017 financial report, Nucor delivered its highest annual earnings since 2008. Consolidated net sales increased 25 percent to $20.25 billion, compared with $16.21 billion for fiscal 2016. Shipments to outside customers during 2017 totaled 26,492,000 tons, an increase of 9 percent from fiscal 2016. Average sales price per ton increased 15 percent. […]
As plugged into Washington as they may be, the leadership of the Steel Manufacturers Association is in the dark on Section 232, just like everyone else. Queried by reporters last week during SMA’s board meeting in Florida, the trade group’s officers could offer no inside information on what to expect from President Trump as he […]
Gerdau is making changes in its North American leadership. Peter Campo, president of the North American long steel division, will leave the company effective Jan. 23. Gerdau CEO Gustavo Werneck will lead operations until a new leader for the division is selected. “The recent change in our business portfolio in North America demanded a shift […]
Last year was a record breaker for Steel Dynamics in multiple areas. The company reported records for steel shipments, fabrication shipments, net sales, operating income and EBITDA. Annual net income totaled $813 million compared to $382 million in 2016. Net sales for the full year totaled $9.5 billion compared to $7.8 million the previous year. […]
Imports of rolled steel into the United States have been on the decline since peaking in July, based on a three-month moving average of government import data through the end of 2017. In three months through December compared to three months through September, total rolled steel imports declined by 16.8 percent, while sheet products dropped […]
In Q1 2018, long product imports increased by 9.5 percent compared to Q4 2017. Total long product imports were down by 150,000 tons per month year over year on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis, but there was a turn for the worse in the first quarter, according to Steel Market Update’s analysis of federal […]
The January buy period saw ferrous scrap prices move significantly higher, lending support to recent mill price increases. While February is historically a down month for scrap, sources predict that February prices will be as high or even higher than January’s. January ferrous markets ended higher by $30 per gross ton for obsolete grades and […]
Zinc reached a 10-year high on Thursday, closing at $3,364 per metric ton on the London Metal Exchange. Zinc, used for galvanizing metals, has nearly doubled in price over the past two years as supplies have tightened. At the same time, demand has increased. Chinese demand grew by 2.1 percent last year, and U.S. demand […]
Key market indicators bode well for business conditions in the first quarter of 2018. Steel Market Update’s view of the present situation based on our examination of data released in December shows that 47.2 percent of the 36 indicators are historically positive with only 19 percent negative. The balance is within the historically normal band. […]
Commercial Metals Company (CMC) has agreed to buy Gerdau’s rebar operations in the United States for $600 million. The acquisition includes 33 rebar fabrication facilities, as well as steel mills in Knoxville, Tenn.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Sayreville, N.J.; and Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., with annual mill rolling capacity of 2.5 million tons. The addition of the Gerdau facilities will bring CMC’s global […]
Rolled steel imports into the United States declined by 12.7 percent in the three-month period from September-November, compared with the prior three months, June-August. Sheet products declined by 11.4 percent on the same basis, according to weekly licensed import tonnages reported by of the U.S. Department of Commerce on Dec. 5. The data is reported […]
As a result of this week’s preliminary circumvention ruling, Vietnamese traders here in the United States must pay the Chinese duties on the substrate used to produce cold rolled and CORE (corrosion resistant) steels if they are unable to prove the substrate used was from another country. Here’s the actual ruling: “The Department of Commerce […]
Steel Market Update’s steel market indicators show improved trends in the November data. In our examination of data released in November, our view of the present situation is that 47.2 percent of the 36 indicators are historically positive with only 19 percent negative. The balance is within the band of historically normal. The total of […]
Total rolled steel imports declined by 14.0 percent in the three months through October, compared to the three months through July. Sheet products were down by 12.6 percent on the same basis, based on final license data for October reported by of the U.S. Commerce Department on Nov. 7. The data is reported within the […]
Steel market indicators look good in the October data, but the trends took a turn for the worse. In the data released in October, our view of the present situation is that 47.2 percent of the 36 indicators are historically positive with only 19 percent negative. The balance are within the band of historically normal. […]
Steel imports into the U.S. increased by nearly 20 percent in the first nine months of the year, giving imports an estimated 28 percent share of the U.S. steel market—much to the ire of domestic steelmakers. Citing preliminary Census Bureau data, the American Iron and Steel Institute on Wednesday reported that steel imports year to […]
Commercial Metals Co., a Texas-based long products producer and scrap recycler, reported a profitable fiscal 2017 despite imports of rebar and other products that continue to squeeze margins. CMC management is hopeful the company will get an assist from Washington in the coming year. “The need for infrastructure renewal is overwhelming, but the issue is […]
The delay by the Trump administration in making a decision on Section 232 is allowing further damage to the steel industry, said Nucor CEO, Chairman and President John Ferriola during the company’s third-quarter conference call. Ferriola said he is not surprised by the surge of imports that have come into the U.S. since spring. Countries […]
The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC) steel and financial futures markets was written by Jack Marshall of Crunch Risk LLC. Here is how Jack saw trading over the past week: Steel It has been a very active trading week in HR futures along all portions of the curve as over 83,000 ST […]
Zinc prices continue their rally that began in early 2016, taking the metal’s price to a 10-year high and raising the cost of producing galvanized steel and other products. Zinc prices have managed to breach the psychological ceiling of $3,000 per metric ton, which stalled rallies in November 2016 and February 2017. Breaking this ceiling […]
Total rolled steel imports declined by 5.8 percent in the three months through September, compared with the three months through June. Sheet product imports were down by 3.9 percent on the same basis. The final license data for September was reported by of the U.S. Commerce Department on Oct. 3. The data is reported within […]
The ferrous scrap market is softening and SMU’s sources expect prices to drop by $10 to $20 per gross ton in October. Domestic mills are beginning to cancel September orders that have not been completed (delivered) by the end of the month. This is a sure sign the mills believe ferrous scrap negotiations for October […]
Pictures of countless cars and trucks submerged in Houston floodwaters and homes shattered by high winds in the Southeast have the worth of a thousand words in describing the destruction from Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. What they say about post-storm conditions in the ferrous scrap market is less clear. For those who assume thousands of […]
Ferrous scrap prices were expected to rise by $20 to $30 per gross ton once the September negotiations began. By Thursday afternoon (today), we were learning that steel mills are suddenly able to buy at sideways numbers. We understand North Star BlueScope was able to buy September at the same prices as August. Other sources […]