The announcement by General Motors today is going to be a precursor for more bad news, in my opinion. With every action there is a reaction, and the expectation that raising steel prices by an extra 25 percent (and more) would not have an impact on the competitiveness of U.S. made products is being short-sighted. […]
The attitudes of steel buyers and sellers, as measured by this week’s SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index questionnaire, show mixed feelings in the marketplace following the midterm elections. Current Sentiment was an impressive +65 measured as a single data point. Future Sentiment dropped -7 points to +58. Both are well within the “optimistic” side of […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: On Nov. 21, the WTO Dispute Settlement Body conducted its regular monthly meeting. The DSB is composed of all WTO members and oversees cases brought under the WTO Dispute Settlement Understanding. That is one of the 23 WTO […]
Two out of three respondents to Steel Market Update’s market trends questionnaire this week said they remain concerned about the possible negative impacts of trade tariffs on their business and that of their customers. The Section 232 tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum remain a serious obstacle to the new North American free trade […]
The North American auto industry is urging the White House to drop the Section 232 tariffs before the official signing of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). During testimony last week before the International Trade Commission, the Motor and Equipment Manufacturers Association, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers and the American Automotive Policy Council asked the administration to exempt […]
I thought some of the comments made to me earlier today by one of the steel mills were quite interesting. “We continue to see good activity, but regional trade is king (and competitive) and long lead time foreign is being shunned. Instead of fighting off Vietnam in coated, we see a battle within NAFTA. Imports […]
Despite paying CAD $39 million in tariffs on 24 percent of its shipments, Canadian steel producer Stelco turned in a stellar performance in third-quarter 2018. Stelco reported third-quarter revenue of $619 million, 84 percent higher than a year ago due to a 43 percent increase in steel shipping volumes and a 24 percent increase in […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: It’s worth a moment to reflect on the end, one century ago today, of the First World War, “the war to end wars.” The Armistice led to a bitter peace and another even more destructive war, the effects […]
The laws of unintended consequences concern me. President Trump’s Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs, as well as Section 301 tariffs, are only beginning to have an impact on the consumer. It is only a matter of time before consumers have to react as they do not have unlimited cash flow to pay higher prices […]
Toronto-based Russel Metals reported “stellar” results for its third quarter, attributing the company’s success to a high steel price environment and improved demand in all three of its business segments: service centers, energy products and steel distributors. Trade actions by government authorities have increased steel prices, which has benefited both producers and distributors. However, these […]
Total rolled product imports declined by 20.4 percent in October, versus the same month last year, measured as a three-month moving average, but the effects of Section 232 are still not clear. This early look at October’s import volume is based on Commerce Department license data (see explanation below). Figure 1 shows the tonnage of […]
Reporting a profitable third quarter, Essar Steel Algoma is moving closer to emergence from bankruptcy. The Canadian steel producer announced income from operations for the three-month period ending Sept. 30 of C$107.9 million, up from income of C$74.3 million in the same period of 2017. Algoma’s steel shipments rose 6.3 percent year-over-year to 620,137 tons. […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: Summary of Section 232 Exclusion Data As of early October, according to a comprehensive analysis by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, there have been 30,916 tariff exclusion requests for steel products. There have been 14,356 objections, […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: Commentators and administration officials have filled the airwaves with speculation about the future course of the U.S.-China “trade war” over the last few weeks. Today, I provide a brief assessment of where this might be going. Memories of Lenin’s […]
Manufacturing activity continues to be strong, according to the latest ISM Report on Business, although slowing its pace of growth as it enters the fourth quarter. The October PMI declined 2.1 percentage points from September to register 57.7 percent. Most of the components of the PMI are trending at a slower rate. The new orders […]
Metalforming companies are expecting business conditions to slow slightly during the next three months as new orders decline, according to the October 2018 Precision Metalforming Association survey. Average daily shipping levels also decreased in October with 23 percent of firms forecasting a decrease in orders compared to 15 percent last month. Only 2 percent of […]
The price increase on flat rolled seems to have “fizzled out,” according to many of the steel buyers Steel Market Update spoke with over the past two days. A number of mills have sweetened their end-of-the-year deals in order to finish out their 2018 order book. This is not unusual during a normal fourth quarter, […]
The United States has denied initial requests by World Trade Organization members to establish dispute settlement panels over Section 232 tariffs, claiming that once a national security measure is invoked under Article XXI, it cannot be litigated by a WTO panel. The United States may block a request for a dispute panel one time, but […]
Section 232 tariffs are coming under fire by representatives of Mexico and Canada, who say there will be no signing of the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) on trade in North America until the tariffs are lifted. “We need to solve that issue before the signing takes place,” said Juan Carlos Baker, Mexico undersecretary for foreign […]
AK Steel reported its best third quarter in 10 years with net income of $67.2 million and a 39 percent year-over-year jump in adjusted EBITDA to $160.8 million. Steady shipment levels and higher steel selling prices and shipments more than offset higher costs for certain raw materials, transportation and supplies, including graphite electrodes, said the […]
Earlier today, I spoke to the RIPA/IPANA annual meeting about the steel industry, AD/CVD duties, Section 232 tariffs and a number of our proprietary products. No one fell asleep, which is always a good sign. I will be back in the office on Friday morning, and with the exception of one quick trip to CRU […]
Ford Motor Co. is calling on the administration to resolve steel and aluminum disputes that will cost the company more than a billion dollars in annual profits this year and next. The Section 232 tariffs have pushed U.S. steel prices well above those of foreign competitors and higher than Ford was expecting. “U.S. steel costs […]
Harry Moser, president of the Reshoring Initiative, is a big supporter of the Trump administration and its trade policies. But when it comes to the Section 232 tariffs on steel imports, which have dramatically raised steel prices in the U.S., domestic steelmakers have gained at the expense of steel-consuming manufacturers downstream. “Overall, I am delighted […]
ArcelorMittal Dofasco will receive up to $38 million from the Canadian government towards a $156 million modernization project at its Hamilton facility. The money is part of a C$250 million (U.S. $191 million) fund set up to provide support to steel, aluminum and manufacturing companies impacted by tariffs resulting from the Section 232 measures imposed […]
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland says it would be in the best interest of both Canada and the United States to lift tariffs the countries now impose on each other, but she offered no timeline on when that might occur. Responding to a press question yesterday on the prospects that the U.S. Section 232 […]
The U.S. Trade Representative is seeking comments on the World Trade Organization challenge by South Korea to U.S. safeguards imposed on imports of large residential washers in February 2018. The WTO established a Dispute Settlement Body panel on Sept. 26 following a request by South Korea in August. The European Union, China, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, […]
United Steelworkers in Canada are rejecting any plan by the U.S. to impose quotas on Canadian steel and aluminum imports. “Canada’s government must emphatically stand up for the Canadian steel and aluminum industries and thousands of families whose livelihoods are at stake,” said USW National Director Ken Neumann. “There is no justification for Canada to […]
Cleveland Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves is looking forward to the completion of the company’s HBI pellet plant in Toledo, Ohio. The project is on time and under budget and construction has begun on the 400-foot tower that will be completed by the end of 2019. Startup of HBI production is anticipated in mid-2020. The company […]
Lewis Leibowitz, trade attorney and contributor to Steel Market Update, offers the following commentary on the latest developments in Washington: Three items of interest for today, which will be expanded upon as events warrant: WTO Disputes on Section 232 Tariffs—At least two WTO members (the EU and Norway) requested formation of a dispute settlement panel […]
Lewis Leibowitz, trade attorney and contributor to Steel Market Update, offers the following commentary on the latest developments in Washington: As we approach the 2018 mid-term elections in a bit more than two weeks, I checked on the available data on voter attitudes toward the tariffs and trade policy. There is a lot of information […]