Final Thoughts: The Chicago Briefing
Last week, Steel Market Update and CRU hosted our inaugural VIP Briefing in Chicago ahead of the Scouting America Metals Industry Dinner.
Last week, Steel Market Update and CRU hosted our inaugural VIP Briefing in Chicago ahead of the Scouting America Metals Industry Dinner.
Each of SMU’s sheet and plate price indices climbed higher this week, with all products rising further to new multi-year highs.
Nucor executives said US steel demand remains stable, with pockets of strength in data centers, energy, border fence work, and infrastructure.
Nucor's new, 3-million-ton-per-year sheet mill in Apple Grove, W.Va., has reached "about 85%" completion, with commissioning now underway.
Sheet market participants reported steady to elevated demand over the past week. But while spot prices continued to edge up, some sources said lead times were becoming more closely aligned to industry norms.
According to the latest findings from SMU’s survey, more respondents answered that President Trump’s tariff policies have been helpful to their businesses than in the prior survey.
In a Final Thoughts las week, I asked “Got Steel?” And if you’re looking for spot tons in June, the answer still isn’t obvious.
Each of SMU’s sheet and plate price indices climbed higher this week, with most products rising further to new multi-year highs
Steel Dynamics Inc’s chief executive is bullish on M&A opportunities despite the rejection of its joint bid for Australia’s BlueScope Steel.
Steel Dynamics Inc.’s first-quarter 2026 earnings soared on record steel shipments and a jump in steel prices.
The flat-rolled steel market looks poised for continued gains despite widespread concerns about higher freight costs stemming from the Iran War, according to SMU's latest steel market survey.
Participants in the hot- and cold-rolled coils market are optimistic about the market's health.
Service centers held only 2.24 months of supply (49.3 days of supply) of sheet products in March, according to our latest figures. If you check our archives, you’ll see that's the lowest sheet inventories we’ve seen since June 2021 – which was hardly a bad year for steel.
Steel mill lead times remained elevated this week, according to buyers responding to our latest market survey.
Most sheet and plate buyers continue to report that mills are not negotiable on new order spot prices, according to our latest market survey conducted this week.
US service centers’ flat-rolled steel supply declined for a third straight month in March, with shipping days of supply slipping to 49.3 on an adjusted basis, according to SMU data.
Hyundai Steel and France-based Fives Group announced the signing of a contract for coil finishing lines for the Hyundai-POSCO joint steel mill proposed in Louisiana.
US steel exports held steady from January to February and remain near historical lows.
Sheet and plate prices increased yet again this week on an increasingly tight spot market. It's gotten so tight that some market participants say they're becoming more concerned about availability than about price.
What a local media report described as an "explosion" on Friday night at U.S. Steel's Gary Works in Northwest Indiana has not disrupted production or resulted in any injuries, that company said.
Steel imports remain near some of the lowest volumes recorded in over five years.
Sheet market participants said they expect hot-rolled coil prices to continue to rise. A Midwest service center source said some mills are not taking spot orders. And even on the contract side, certain mills are “keeping customers at the ‘middle’ of their contract buys to help get lead-times back into shape,” he said. That’s a […]
The Middle East conflict continues to be the principal factor in rising prices, as its impact is now being felt throughout the supply chain. Coated sheet prices have borne the larger brunt of the impact. This is despite...
More people expect hot-rolled (HR) coil prices to continue to climb. And most respondents to our last survey predict that prices will hit or even breach the $1,100 per short ton (st) threshold.
Sheet and plate prices continued to hold steady or tick upward once again this week. And the factors behind the gains are familiar ones: limited spot tonnage, stable demand, limited import competition, and outages (planned or otherwise) at domestic mills.
SMU’s Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Indices have both inched up, according to our most recent survey data.
Steel mill production times for sheet and plate products remain at or near multi-year highs, according to buyers responding to our latest market survey.
Most steel buyers report that mills are not willing to negotiate on new order spot prices, according to our latest market survey. Mill negotiability is now down to one of the lowest rates measured in over a year.
Sheet and plate prices were flat or modestly higher this week, continuing a trend we’ve seen since the beginning of Q4. The big question: How much longer can the trend hold?
Nucor has increased its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil to $1,035 per short ton (st), a $10/st bump from last week.