US steel mills shipped 7.233 million net tons in February, a 7.4% increase from the same month last year when shipments totaled 6.753 million net tons, the American Iron & Steel Institute (AISI) said. But while shipments were up year over year, they were down 6.8% from January. Shipments by US steelmakers year-to-date through February […]
Voestalpine is in advanced talks to sell a majority stake in its hot-briquetted iron (HBI) plant in southern Texas, the company said. “In recent months, Voestalpine has been conducting an open-ended market sounding to stabilize the business model of its direct reduction plant in Corpus Christi, Texas.” The Austrian specialty steelmaker didn’t disclose a potential […]
BlueScope plans to buy Coil Coatings from Cornerstone Building Brands for $500 million to expand its presence in painted products in the eastern US. The Australian steelmaker – parent company of sheet producer North Star BlueScope in Delta, Ohio – said the deal would complement its existing coated products business on the West Coast. The […]
Plate prices have remained relatively steady while sheet prices declined and then surged over the past six months. Plate prices typically carry a premium over hot rolled prices because plate is a value-added product and requires more time on the mill. SMU’s hot rolled coil price averaged $1,460 per ton ($73 per cwt) last week and has risen each of the past […]
Matthew Abrams, Analyst, CRU Group The US Midwest premium on aluminum P1020 has seen consistent upward movement since the recovery from the pandemic started. Last week, it touched $0.40 per pound, a level once heavily fought. The fundamentals of the market indicated room for further upward moves, yet it is pausing here. Markets are getting […]
By CRU Senior Coal Analyst Dmitry Popov, and Senior Analyst Banmeet Khurmi, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor, April 7 Among the latest sanctions against Russia, the EU is planning to introduce a full import ban of Russian coal from August 2022. In this Insight, we look at the EU’s reliance on Russia for thermal […]
Nucor announced today that it has acquired Elite Storage Solutions, a steel racking manufacturer employing 180 full-time teammates at locations in Monroe, Ga., and Chandler, Ariz. This $75 million acquisition expands Nucor’s steel racking capabilities and builds on the company’s acquisition of Hannibal Industries last year “We are excited to grow our steel racking capabilities with this acquisition of Elite Storage Solutions. […]
The US Department of Commerce has decided to continue countervailing duties of 4.35 percent on cut-to-length steel plate from South Korea. “Commerce determines that revocation of the (duty) Order would be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of countervailable subsidies,” according to an entry in the Federal Register dated Friday, April 1, 2022. The decision stems […]
I decided to take a break from prices and survey data today to check in with a few trusted mill and service center executives. Each had their own take on the market. But there were a couple of common threads. First, the war in Ukraine is still driving the steel and metals markets – even […]
Nucor aims to increase plate prices by between $55 per ton ($2.75 per cwt) and $125 per ($6.25 per cwt) depending on the product. The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said the price hike was effective with new orders received on Thursday, March 31, in a letter to customers dated the same day. The company made the […]
Steel mill lead times continue to extend, but they are rising at a more moderate pace compared to early March. Steel Market Update’s latest check of the market indicates that lead times for sheet and plate increased by an average of 0.6 weeks, compared to an average jump of 1.2 weeks two weeks prior. Buyers surveyed […]
Sheet prices continue to rise with new, higher offers from some domestic mills: as much as $1,500 per ton for hot-rolled coil and $1,900 per ton for cold-rolled and coated product. Despite those higher pricing levels, gains on the hot-rolled side have moderated. SMU’s benchmark hot-rolled coil price now stands at $1,435 per ton ($71.75 […]
The US Commerce Department has decided to continue anti-dumping duties on cut-to-length plate from a dozen nations. It has also determined that countervailing duties – more than 250% – on plate from China should remain in place. The Sun Doesn’t Set on Steel Duties Those decisions follow an expedited “sunset” review that began on December […]
We are less than 3 weeks away from our LIVE Steel 101: An Introduction to Steelmaking and Market Fundamentals training course, to be hoested on Memphis, Tennessee on April 19-20. The workshop will include a guided tour of the Nucor Hickman mill, just across the Mississippi River in Arkansas. Attendees will be able to see first hand […]
Nucor has increased the raw materials surcharge (RMS) for customers buying steel sheet on terms linked to scrap prices. The Charlotte, NC-based steelmaker said its RMS – based on prices for busheling scrap – would be $515 per ton ($25.75 per cwt) in April, a $190-per-ton increase from prior levels. The higher RMS will be […]
Producer prices rose moderately in February, maintaining a sustained 23-month growth run. Last month the headline index grew by just 0.8%, seasonally adjusted, but was a gain of 10% when compared to the same year-ago period, reports the U.S. Labor Department. Wholesale prices accelerated as steady consumer demand and pandemic-related supply-chain snarls continued to fuel […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor, March 23 Persistently high steelmaking raw material prices and restricted global production pushed sheet prices higher w/w across the world. The largest of these increases were in Europe and the USA, with prices rising by triple-digit amounts for yet another week. Still, domestic […]
Distributors who sell galvanized steel products have some recent experience at managing purchasing and inventory in a rapidly rising price environment. In their monthly conference call earlier today, members of the Heating, Air-Conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) drew some comparisons between the spike in steel prices prompted by the pandemic last year and the […]
We are delighted to announce that Steel Market Update’s Steel 101: An Introduction to Steelmaking and Market Fundamentals training course will be hosted LIVE on April 19-20 in Memphis, Tenn. The workshop will include a guided tour of the Nucor Hickman, just across the Mississippi River in Arkansas. Attendees will be able to see first hand all stages of […]
By CRU Analyst Diego Giangreco, from CRU’s Steel Monitor, March 16 Brazilian distributor sheet prices fell month on month in March due to weak demand, while mills increased their prices in February or stopped giving discounts to match the trends in the international markets. Before the invasion of Ukraine, we were expecting a downward trend in […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor, March 16 Global sheet prices took notably different directions this week as the war in Ukraine caused record w/w increases in Europe and the USA, while a fresh outbreak of Covid-19 in China pushed domestic prices lower and prevented increases in other Asian […]
Nucor will implement a biweekly update to its current fuel surcharge effective Thursday, April 3, for some steel products. Certain divisions of the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said the move was necessary because “fuel prices are at all-time high levels,” in letters to customers dated Wednesday, March 16. SMU has seen matching letters from the company’s […]
Nucor Corp., the largest steelmaker in the U.S., expects to achieve record first quarter earnings in the range of $7.20 to $7.30 per diluted share. That’s down from earnings of $7.97 per share in the prior quarter but double $3.10 per share in the same quarter last year. Steel mill segment earnings in the quarter ending this month will […]
Nucor aims to increase base prices for steel sheet by at least $125 per ton ($6.25 per cwt) effective immediately. “We reserve the right to review and re-quote any offers that are not confirmed with either a Nucor sales acknowledgement or written acceptance by both parties,” the company said in a letter to customers dated […]
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) expects modestly higher first-quarter earnings despite lower average flat-rolled steel selling prices over the last three months. The Fort Wayne, Ind.-based steelmaker expects earnings of $5.55-5.59 per diluted share in the first quarter, according to figures released after the close of markets on Wednesday, March 16. That’s up from $5.49 per […]
Sheet prices saw their biggest week-over-week gains – and by a wide margin – since Steel Market Update’s foundation in 2008. Case in point: SMU’s average hot-rolled coil price jumped to $1,260 per ton this week ($63 per cwt), up $210 per ton (20%) from $1,050 per ton last week. That is more than double […]
Sheet prices saw their biggest week-over-week gains – and by a wide margin – since Steel Market Update’s foundation in 2008. Case in point: SMU’s average hot-rolled coil price jumped to $1,260 per ton this week ($63 per cwt), up $210 per ton (20%) from $1,050 per ton last week. That is more than double […]
Flat Rolled = 54.4 Shipping Days of Supply Plate = 51.1 Shipping Days of Supply Flat Rolled U.S. service center flat rolled inventories continued to recede in February, indicating that inventories may be near balance. At the end of February, U.S. service centers carried 54.4 shipping days of supply on an adjusted basis, according to […]
Steel import permit applications for February totaled 2,274,000 net tons—a 24.5% decrease from the 3,013,000 permit tons recorded in January and a 25.3% decrease from the January final imports total of 3,044,000. Import permit tonnage for finished steel in February was 1,759,000, down 22.8% from the final imports total of 2,279,000 in January, reported the […]
Total mill shipments of steel products fell in January to 8.153 million tons, a 9.4% decline from December’s 8.995 million tons, 2021’s strongest monthly performance. Apparent supply also fell in January, down 7.6% versus the prior month, and unable to keep the upward trajectory seen during the final quarter of 2021. This analysis is based on steel […]