U.S. apparent steel supply levels slipped 1% from December to January, down 120,000 net tons to 9.36 million tons, according to the latest U.S. Department of Commerce and American Iron and Steel Institute data. Recall that just last September, the market saw the highest monthly supply level in over six years (9.92 million tons). Apparent […]
Raw steel production by U.S. mills edged back down last week, a trend seen six out of the past eight weeks, as mill utilization cycles up and down within a small range. Domestic mills produced a total of 1,737,000 net tons in the week ending March 12, while capacity utilization slipped back down to 79.9%, […]
U.S. steel exports rose 6% in January to 691,000 net tons, a partial recovery following December’s 10% drop, according to the latest U.S. Department of Commerce data. While the last few months have seen declining export levels, the 12-month moving average through January has reached a 34-month high. January exports are 3% higher than levels […]
The Biden administration rolled out a new round of trade actions aimed at punishing the Russian government for launching an invasion of Ukraine. Some of those measures have the potential to reach deep into the steel supply chain – including with tariffs of 20% or more on many Russian steel products, according to trade experts and government documents. […]
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 […]
By CRU Analyst Chris Bandman, from CRU’s Steel Monitor, March 16 The war in Ukraine is having widespread and deleterious effects on the global steel markets, but no one region has been more heavily affected than Europe. Steel prices in the region have soared to unseen heights and continue to rise on a daily basis. […]
By CRU Research Analyst Christopher Dix and Analysts Diego Giangreco and Tiago Vespoli, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor, March 10 Pig iron prices have increased following disruption to CIS supply. The global pig iron market is short of supply as Russian exports are difficult to replace. Black Sea freight options are now very limited, […]
By Greg Wittbecker, Advisor, CRU Group We digress from the woes of aluminum supply this week to comment on the LME nickel market, which has redefined volatility with a capital “V.” LME nickel has exploded due to a massive Chinese speculative position amidst Russian uncertainty. Nickel fundamentals have been tightening for some time. In 2020, […]
The war in Ukraine has triggered what may be the largest monthly increase in scrap prices ever seen with shredded scrap trading in March at around $600/GT and prime scrap at $700/GT – up by $125-175/GT over February, sources tell Steel Market Update. Market participants were expecting modestly higher scrap prices in March following declines […]
The global steel industry will see ripple effects from the war in Ukraine for years to come. Its direct and indirect effects will cut European steel capacity by 30-40% in the near term as the conflict disrupts the flow of natural gas and steelmaking raw materials – most notably steel slabs from Russia, said Johnny […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor, March 9 The CRUspi moved higher m/m as war in Ukraine broke steel supply chains. While prices in the USA were down m/m, this downward trajectory has now halted. Elsewhere, buyers are scrambling to secure enough steel and steelmaking raw materials before prices […]
Hot-rolled coil prices are up an average up $50 per ton ($2.50 per cwt) this week, breaking a six-month trend of flat or falling prices. And that gain might prove modest compared to what’s in store in the weeks ahead. Why? Because the war in Ukraine has the potential to shock the steel market at […]
By CRU Research Analyst Aaron Kearney-Keaveny, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor, March 8 The war in Ukraine has caused a dramatic rise in the iron ore price, which now stands at $164 /dmt. European steelmakers are now scrambling to find iron ore to replace lost imports from Ukraine and Russia. The market will take […]
U.S. Steel and Steel Dynamics notified customers of an upward revision to their galvanized steel coating extras on Monday, March 7. New USS extras go into effect on May 1, 2022, while SDI extras go into effect on April 1. “The cost to procure zinc and aluminum for our Hot Dipped Galvanized and Galvalume products […]
Raw steel production by U.S. mills recovered last week, expanding for just the second time in seven weeks. Domestic mills produced a total of 1,762,000 net tons in the week ending March 5, while mill capacity utilization edged back up to 80.0%, the American Iron and Steel Institute reported. U.S. output was up 0.4% compared […]
AZZ Inc. has agreed to purchase Precoat Metals from its parent, Sequa Corp., for approximately $1.28 billion. The deal continues the Fort Worth, Texas-based company’s buying spree in the coated metals space. “We are pleased to acquire North America’s largest independent provider of metal coil coatings and related services,” AZZ CEO Tom Ferguson said. “Through this acquisition, AZZ […]
By Greg Wittbecker, Advisor, CRU Group Two weeks ago, I described how the aluminum industry would not run out of metal supply in 2022 despite the fears of some. Fast forward to today, and we now have the worst case scenario of the war in Ukraine likely leading to Russia being a pariah in the […]
The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC), scrap and financial futures markets was written by Jack Marshall of Crunch Risk LLC. Here is how Jack saw trading over the past week: Hot Rolled In spite of a large drop in the HR index this past week (sub $950/ST), the forward curve in HR […]
Last year when hot rolled coil prices in the U.S. surged to record highs, foreign steel was hundreds of dollars cheaper, and import orders skyrocketed. Now that U.S. steel prices have come back to earth, foreign steel has lost that competitive advantage. Foreign HRC prices are now approximately $45-108 per ton more expensive than domestic steel, […]
Sheet prices fell again this week. But price declines for hot-rolled coil have slowed, with HRC tags down $20 per ton ($1 per cwt) and coalescing around $1,000 per ton. While some mills were reported to be cutting deals as low as $900 per ton, others were said to be mulling price hikes. Cold-rolled and […]
Preliminary Census data shows that steel imports in January rose 7% month-over-month to 3.08 million net tons, the highest monthly level seen in the past two years. February import licenses through March 1 are currently at 2.20 million tons, a 29% decline from January and down 24% compared to December. Note that the latest U.S. […]
California Steel Industries, Nucor and USS-UPI notified customers of an upward revision to their galvanized steel coating extras earlier this week. Prior to this change, many mills had revised their galvanized coating extras in late-2021, with new prices going into effect in January 2022. Although the reason for these updated extras was not specifically mentioned by […]
Raw steel production by U.S. mills fell again last week, now down five out of the past six weeks. Domestic mills produced a total of 1,755,000 net tons in the week ending Feb. 26, while mill capacity utilization slipped back down to 79.7%, reported the American Iron and Steel Institute. U.S. output was down 0.5% […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Matthew Watkins and Research Analyst Christopher Dix, from CRU’s Global Steel Trade Service, Feb. 28. Contributors Erik Hedborg, Dmitry Popov, Ryan McKinley and Clare Hanna. Following the escalation of the situation in Ukraine, we set out what positions Russia has currently in the export market through the steel value chain. In the short term […]
By CRU Multi Commodity Analyst Alex Christopher and Research Analyst James Mills, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor, March 3 The sanctions imposed on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine will have direct and indirect implications for commodity markets, and their impact will be felt by everyone involved along the length of commodity value chains. […]
By Matthew Abrams, Analyst, CRU Group Now that we have seen the first steps of an invasion into Ukraine by Russian forces, the business concerns shift to the possibility of sanctions and how severe they might be. While initially the aluminum market itself is not expected to be directly targeted, there are various potential and […]
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 […]
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 Market Update sources expect ferrous scrap prices to rise by at least $30/GT, and probably more, in most regions next month, following substantial declines in January and February. On the metallics front, mills around the world are watching anxiously to see how the conflict in Ukraine will impact pig iron supplies and prices. “The […]
Sheet prices fell hard again this week. Our average hot-rolled coil number now stands at $1,020 per ton ($51/cwt), down $60 per ton from last week and marking the lowest point for HRC prices since January 2021. Large buyers reported deals in the mid-$900s. Another notable trend: Prices for coated products led the way downward […]