October saw a gradual decline in steel prices for the second consecutive month, following one full year of continuous price increases. Hot rolled steel prices decreased $45 per ton throughout the month, with the SMU index averaging $1,885 per ton ($94.25 per cwt) as of Tuesday, Oct. 26. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator for hot […]
Domestic mills plan to announce higher zinc coating extras as soon as this week, according to market participants. The higher coating extras would be effective Jan. 1, 2022, they said. At least two domestic mills have also confirmed that extras will move higher. Zinc is used to make galvanized products. It prevents rust. Zinc prices […]
By CRU Analyst Helen O’Cleary, from CRU’s Zinc Monitor Zinc’s price started LME Week looking mildly bullish on short covering, with the 3-month official price settling at $3,246 /t on Oct. 12. By Oct. 15, it had reached $3,944 /t, turbocharged by news of smelter cutbacks in Europe due to soaring energy prices and the […]
By CRU Research Manager Eoin Dinsmore, from CRU’s January Zinc Monitor Buyers who are unfortunate enough to find themselves in the spot market are paying 18-23¢ /lb for SGH zinc. The most recent deals have all been at 20¢ /lb or higher. Buyers are fearful of being left short metal, while suppliers are either sold […]
Prices for four of the seven steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis increased over the last 30 days. Through Oct. 20, zinc prices shot up 24% over one month prior, iron ore prices rebounded 18% in one month’s time, aluminum prices rose 9%, and coking coal prices increased 8%. In that same time […]
Editor’s note: SMU contributor Bryan Tice is a partner at Metal Edge Partners, a firm engaged in Risk Management and Strategic Advisory. In this role, he and the firm design and execute risk management strategies for clients along with providing process and analytical support. Before joining Metal Edge Partners, Bryan held a variety of commercial […]
Steel prices gradually declined through the month of September, following one full year of increasing prices. Hot rolled steel prices decreased $35 per ton ($1.75 per cwt) throughout the month, with the SMU index averaging $1,920 per ton ($96.00 per cwt) as of last Tuesday. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator was adjusted to neutral the […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Helen O’Cleary, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor CRU recently developed a bottom-up zinc demand model to improve our medium-term demand forecasts. The model calculates demand in key regions and countries for the six major first uses of refined zinc: galvanized sheet, general galvanizing, copper-zinc alloys, die casting alloys, zinc oxide […]
Prices for four of the seven steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis decreased over the last 30 days. Through Sept. 17, iron ore prices stumbled 21% in one month’s time, busheling scrap prices declined 12%, pig iron prices fell 11%, and shredded scrap prices declined 3%. Coking coal prices jumped 49% in that […]
Prices for four of the seven steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis decreased over the last 30 days. Through Sept. 1st, iron ore prices stumbled 18% in one month’s time, pig iron prices fell 11%, shredded scrap prices declined 4%, and zinc prices decreased 2%. Busheling scrap prices remained flat month over month, while aluminum prices rose […]
Steel prices continued to climb through the month of August, marking one full year of increasing prices. Hot rolled steel prices increased $45 per ton ($2.25 per cwt) throughout the month, with the SMU index averaging $1,935 per ton ($96.75 per cwt) as of Tuesday. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator remains unchanged since the August 2020 adjustment to higher, indicating prices […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Helen O’Cleary, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor The automotive industry accounts for approximately 10% of end-use sector zinc demand, in the form of galvanized steel sheet, die castings and oxide. Even before the pandemic, vehicle output and sales in some of the major producing countries were being constrained by new […]
Steel prices continued to climb through the month of July, now the 11th consecutive month prices have increased. Hot-rolled steel prices increased an average of $30 per ton ($1.50 per cwt) each week, with the SMU index averaging $1,860 per ton ($93 per cwt) as of last Tuesday. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator has remained unchanged since the […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Helen O’Cleary U.S. refined demand continues to impress through the traditionally slower summer months, with market contacts reporting still-strong off-take under long-term contracts into August. We hear that many consumers continue to take the higher end of their contracted metal tonnage, with some still buying additional spot quantities. A further increase […]
Prices for four of the seven steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis increased from June to July, with all products following large gains in previous months. Over the last 30 days, coking coal prices increased 16% and busheling scrap prices rose 5%. Zinc and aluminum prices increased less than 1%, while shredded scrap remained flat and pig […]
Steel prices rose even higher through the month of June, now the 10th consecutive month prices have increased. Hot rolled steel prices increased an average of $30 per ton each week, reaching $1,770 per ton in SMU’s latest check of the market. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator has remained unchanged since the August 2020 adjustment […]
Editor’s note: Steel Market Update is please to share this Premium content with Executive members. For information on how to upgrade to a Premium-level subscription, email Info@SteelMarketUpdate.com. Prices for all but one of the steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis increased from May to June, with most products following large gains seen in […]
By CRU Principal Aluminum Analyst Guillaume Osouf The LME aluminum price has been going through a period of consolidation since it reached its last significant peak at $2,603 /t on May 10. A similar situation was observed between December 2020 and February 2021 before the rally resumed even stronger. Can we expect the same to […]
The U.S. Commerce Department has determined that coated flat-rolled steel made in Malaysia from Chinese or Taiwanese substrate circumvents U.S. anti-dumping and countervailing duties. As a result, coated product from Malaysia could be subject to duties of more than 200% if it is determined to be made from Chinese hot-rolled coil or cold-rolled coil, according […]
Steel prices continued to climb higher in May, now the ninth consecutive month prices have increased. Hot rolled steel prices increased an average of $23 per ton each week, reaching $1,590 per ton as of last week when this article was filed. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator has remained unchanged since the August 2020 adjustment […]
Prices for all of the steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis increased from April to May, with most products following large gains seen in previous months. Over the last 30 days, pig iron and coking coal prices have increased 17-19%, respectively. In that same period, prices increased for iron ore 9%, zinc 6%, scrap 5% and […]
California Steel Industries (CS) will increase its zinc coating extras effective July 1. “Due to changing zinc costs, our galvanized coating extras have been revised,” the company said in a letter to customers on Friday, May 14. The West Coast slab re-roller last increased coating extras in early December. Zinc prices have since risen. Zinc […]
Limited supply and strong demand continued to push steel prices higher throughout April, now the eighth consecutive month in which prices have increased. Hot rolled steel prices increased an average of $25 per ton each week, reaching $1,440 per ton by the end of April, exceeding any historical price by far. The SMU Price Momentum […]
By CRU Chief Economist Jumana Saleheen and CRU Head of Fertilizers Chris Lawson, from CRU’s Steel Monitor Commodity prices have continued an upwards tear in 2021. Steel and its raw materials have seen the sharpest gains, but less well-known commodities such as fertilizers are also attracting attention. With such steep price rises, calls for a […]
Among steelmaking raw materials, the prices of iron ore, pig iron, zinc and aluminum rose through mid-April, on top of large gains seen in previous months. Prices increased as much as 10% month-over-month for those four products. Iron ore prices have reached record levels, while coking coal prices remain down. Pig iron and scrap prices […]
For the seventh consecutive month, steel prices rose throughout March, fueled by a continuation of strong demand and limited supply. Hot rolled steel prices averaged $1,300 per ton by the middle of the month, far exceeding any historical price record, and reached $1,330 by the last week of March. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator has […]
Among steelmaking raw materials, the prices of pig iron, shredded scrap, busheling scrap and aluminum rose again in March on top of large gains in previous months. Prices increased as much as 14% month-over-month for those four products. Iron ore prices are slightly down compared to levels one month prior, while coking coal prices have […]
By CRU Analyst Sam Grant, from CRU’s Zinc Monitor The U.S. COVID-19 vaccination program has continued to make impressive headway over the past month, with over 100 M doses now administered across the country. With more transmissible strains of the virus now present in the U.S., and with many states continuing to roll back containment […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Helen O’Cleary from CRU’s Zinc Monitor. Zinc use has been optimized on an ongoing basis for decades as technological advances lead to lower raw materials usage and the development of higher-performing alloys with a lower zinc content. This is particularly true of the galvanizing industry, which accounts for around 60% of […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Helen O’Cleary from CRU’s Zinc Monitor After a month of sideways trading in April, zinc’s price has entered ever more overbought territory in recent weeks, following copper’s price higher and benefiting from booming ex. China steel demand and the news this week of output cuts at zinc smelters in China’s Yunnan […]