Does President Trump’s call for a “reciprocal tax” on imports from countries that impose higher tariffs than the U.S. give him cover for the dilemma he faces over Section 232? Speaking at a White House meeting with state officials and local executives on Monday to discuss his infrastructure plan, the president offered up some unexpected […]
Fifteen trade associations, representing more than 30,000 U.S. steel-using manufacturers and employing one million American workers, sent a letter to President Trump and other senior trade officials last night in advance of the meeting between the administration and lawmakers regarding Section 232. The letter warns that restrictions on basic steel imports will “adversely impact national […]
First, tomorrow (Wednesday) is Valentine’s Day. The heat is turning up on Section 232 discussions as trade groups, individual businesses and congressmen lean in and provide their opinions to President Trump. He still sounds like he is going to do something “disruptive,” but we just don’t know for sure. As you can see from tonight’s […]
The American Institute for International Steel, which represents foreign steel producers, sent a letter to President Trump on Thursday on behalf of the 1.3 million people who depend on steel imports for their livelihoods. AIIS President Richard Chriss urged the administration not to impose new tariffs and quotas on imported steel products that would benefit […]
Today is Feb. 11 and it has been one month since Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross sent his recommendation regarding Section 232 to the office of President Trump. Since then, there has been much speculation but nothing of substance as the industry waits for the president to remove the uncertainty. Over the past week, I […]
Current and future sentiment among flat rolled steel buyers remains at or near record highs, according to the latest Steel Market Update Steel Buyers Sentiment Index. The index measures changes in buyers’ optimism levels, which offers insight into their likely decision-making. Three out of four respondents to SMU’s flat rolled market trends questionnaire this week […]
We are working on an article about what companies are doing with the tax windfall they will be receiving this year. We have noticed a couple of companies like Mill Steel that are giving their employees a bonus check. We would like to include your company in our article should you be doing something special […]
Editor’s note: Richard Chriss, president of the American Institute for International Steel, which represents foreign steelmakers, offered this rebuttal to a recent letter to the editor in the New York Times by Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing: There is no single word for the economic fallacy of assuming that those who […]
As the steel industry continues to wait for President Trump’s decision on restricting steel imports on national security grounds, steel prices continue to rise. Has the market already factored in Section 232? In Steel Market Update’s latest market trends questionnaire, SMU asked steel buyers: Do you believe existing steel prices include a positive Section 232 […]
The United Steelworkers challenged the president to reduce the trade deficit after Commerce released its deficit report today. The Department of Commerce reported that for 2017, the goods and services deficit increased $61.2 billion, or 12.1 percent, from 2016. Exports increased $121.2 billion or 5.5 percent and imports increased $182.5 billion or 6.7 percent. Specifically […]
The steel industry stands to be a major beneficiary of the $1.5 trillion in infrastructure improvements proposed by President Trump in his State of the Union address on Tuesday, but don’t count on the extra government business anytime soon. Not unlike his plan to build a border wall paid for by Mexico rather than the […]
U.S. steelmakers sent a letter to President Trump on Feb. 1 urging the administration to take action against steel imports under Section 232. The letter from the American Iron and Steel Institute stressed that immediate action is needed to prevent imports from recapturing nearly a third of the U.S. market as they did last June. […]
Inaction by the Trump administration leaves the market to wonder if the Section 232 investigation will lead to new tariffs or quotas this year on steel imports. Steel buyers contacted by Steel Market Update are concerned that additional restrictions on foreign imports may create a shortage and make steel prices even more volatile. Following are […]
Bank of America Merrill Lynch sees market conditions lining up for a strong first quarter with hot rolled coil prices that could even hit $800 per ton. “Even without Section 232 support, a weaker U.S. dollar, good demand, Chinese supply curtailments and recent trade case action can support prices well through the second half,” predicts […]
Those who were hoping the State of the Union address would offer some indication of how President Trump will act on Section 232 were left disappointed. His speech was long on patriotism and short on specifics when it came to trade policy. The steel industry is left to speculate on whether the administration will further […]
The flat rolled and plate steel mills were busy this week announcing new rounds of price increases. Steel buyers who spoke with Steel Market Update today reported offer prices as being much higher than their most recent transaction pricing. For that reason, we have included a note about what was being reported as the latest […]
For those who were hoping President Trump’s State of the Union address last night might provide some clarity on U.S. trade policy, perhaps even a brief mention of NAFTA or Section 232, his remarks were a disappointment. The only time he mentioned “steel” was in describing “the steel in America’s spine” in overcoming the challenges […]
For those who were hoping President Trump’s State of the Union address last night might provide some clarity on U.S. trade policy, perhaps even a brief mention of NAFTA or Section 232, his remarks were a disappointment. The only time he mentioned “steel” was in describing “the steel in America’s spine” in overcoming the challenges […]
Planned maintenance outages at AK Steel contributed to a net loss of $107.9 million in the fourth quarter. Net sales during the quarter increased 5 percent to $1.5 billion, however, driven by incremental sales from recently acquired Precision Partners. Flat rolled shipments declined to 1,337,100 tons in the quarter from 1,385,500 tons in Q4 2016 […]
Steel imports into the United States declined by 10 percent in December, compared with the prior month, to 2.45 million net tons, according to preliminary Census data. This followed an 11.4 percent slide from October to November. But despite the late-year declines, annual steel imports increased by more than 15 percent in 2017. The American […]
The steel community was probably disappointed this evening when President Trump failed to mention anything about the Section 232 investigation that has been hanging over the heads of the industry for one year. We will all need to wait to see if the president will do anything on the subject of steel and aluminum imports. […]
On Wednesday and Thursday of this past week a sold-out group of attendees and six Steel Market Update instructors, one event coordinator and a potential future instructor traveled to Mobile, Alabama to participate in the first Steel 101 workshop of 2018. The workshop was a success aided by the generosity of the SSAB plate mill […]
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 […]
On Wednesday and Thursday of this past week, a sold-out group of attendees and six Steel Market Update instructors, one event coordinator and a potential future instructor traveled to Mobile, Ala., to participate in the first Steel 101 workshop of 2018. The workshop was a success, aided by the generosity of the SSAB plate mill […]
Cleveland Cliffs reported another great quarter with net income of $318 million and sales of $601 million, compared to prior-year income of $81 million and sales of $754 million. For the full year, revenue totaled $2.3 billion with net income of $371 million. Adjusted EBITDA has increased for the past two years, 28 percent in […]
The wheels are moving and things are happening that are going to affect the momentum behind this market. First, there are new price increase announcements being made, first out of California and now by ArcelorMittal USA, which has put new base prices into the market. Second, Big River Steel put their customers on allocation for […]
The pile of unfinished paperwork on President Trump’s desk just got a little taller with Friday’s delivery of the Section 232 report on aluminum. It joins the Section 232 report on steel that hit the president’s desk on Jan. 11, starting the clock on a 90-day deadline for possible trade action. On Jan. 19, the […]
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. […]
Steel is a core business for the port in Tampa, Fla., which handled steel and scrap imports and exports totaling about 900,000 tons last year. Hundreds of industry executives will also pass through the port as attendees of the 29th annual Tampa Steel Conference to be hosted by Port Tampa Bay and Ports America on […]
President Trump’s decision today to impose tariffs on imports of solar panels and large washing machines in a bid to help U.S. manufacturers has heated speculation the administration may take a similar tack on the pending Section 232 rulings on steel and aluminum imports. President Trump has approved recommendations by the U.S. International trade Commission […]