Workers at NLMK Pennsylvania in Farrell, Pa., are in their seventh week of a strike over healthcare and what they claim are unfair labor practices with little progress evident in negotiations. NLMK released a video for employees on Oct. 1 to explain the structure of the proposed new health plan and the savings for workers […]
The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened the United States’ awareness of its economic and security risks, said U.S. Steel President and CEO David Burritt, in an op-ed published by Fox Business. “Key among these risks: the hidden cost of our country’s high dependence on the global supply chain.” As the coronavirus took hold globally, critical supplies […]
By CRU China CEO John Johnson and CRU Senior Consultant Ashley Wang from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor On Sept. 22, in a statement to the United Nations General Assembly, President Xi Jinping announced to world leaders that China “aims to have CO2 emissions peak before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060”. The part of this statement concerning CO2 was brief […]
Swedish initiative HYBRIT has received $2.5 million from the Swedish Energy Agency for a comprehensive study of steelmaking using hydrogen for the direct-reduction of iron ore. HYBRIT is a collaboration of steelmaker SSAB, iron ore producer LKAB, and electricity producer Vattenfall. HYBRIT seeks to replace coking coal used in ore-based steel making with hydrogen to create steel with […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Josh Spoores, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Market Outlook In less than a year Cleveland-Cliffs has transformed themselves from a Great Lakes-based iron ore miner to the largest fully integrated flat rolled steel producer in the USA. Cliffs has done this by acquiring AK Steel earlier this year and now they […]
Recovery, fundamental, opportunity, strategic, exciting. These are the five words steel executives used during AIST’s Virtual Town Hall Forum Wednesday to describe the current state of steel. In the aftermath of an unprecedented upheaval for the economy and the industry caused by the COVID-19 crisis, executives from Big River Steel, Cleveland-Cliffs, Nucor, Steel Dynamics and […]
An explosion at ArcelorMittal Dofasco’s Machine Shop complex on Thursday afternoon destroyed a stress relieving furnace near the welding shop. The explosion was heard by the neighboring areas, but there was no offsite impact or serious injuries to Dofasco team members, the company said. Said spokesperson Marie Verdun in a statement to SMU: “We experienced […]
Cleveland-Cliffs’ purchase of ArcelorMittal USA took many steel buyers by surprise this week. Initial reactions from some Steel Market Update readers ranged from “a major development” to “business as usual.” Here are some of their comments: “Quite surprised by this development. Initial reaction is this gives them an incredibly strong position with automotive. Not sure […]
ArcelorMittal’s divestment of U.S. assets to Cleveland-Cliffs completes the company’s $2 billion asset portfolio optimization and strategically repositions its North American platform. “This transaction is a unique opportunity for ArcelorMittal to unlock significant value for shareholders while retaining exposure to the North American economy through our high-quality NAFTA assets alongside a participation in what will […]
U.S. Steel has selected Kenneth Jaycox to succeed Doug Matthew, who will retire in January, as Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer. Jaycox will be responsible for all North American flat-rolled commercial activities with a focus on customer satisfaction, innovation, new business and market share growth. “We are building a more customer-focused company with our […]
Cleveland-Cliffs is about to become the largest flat-rolled steel producer in North America. The company announced Monday that it will acquire the operations of ArcelorMittal USA and its subsidiaries for a purchase price of approximately $1.4 billion in equity and cash. The transaction includes 78.2 million shares of Cleveland-Cliffs common stock valued at $500 million, […]
Douglas Matthews, Senior Vice President – Chief Commercial & Technology Officer, Tubular and Mining Solutions, plans to retire in January 2021 after 33 years of service with U.S. Steel. “Doug Matthews has played an essential role in revitalizing U.S. Steel and helping us realize our ‘best of both’ integrated and mini-mill strategy,” said U.S. Steel […]
Steel Market Update has had conversations/communications with Robert Miller, CEO and James Banker, Jr., Executive Vice President of NLMK USA as we endeavor to learn more about the status of the strike against the Farrell, Pennsylvania facility, status of slabs for the Farrell mill, and gain a better understanding of the general flat rolled steel […]
Strong demand in auto, residential construction and consumer products benefited Worthington Industries in the first quarter of FY 2021. The company reported net sales of $702.9 million, an 18 percent decline from the first quarter of FY 2020. Net earnings totaled $616.7 million which included a net pre-tax gain of $746.6 million related to Worthington’s […]
Wholesalers who sell HVAC and galvanized steel products to the construction sector have been pleasantly surprised by the resilience of demand in a market dealing with the COVID pandemic. They have been downright shocked by the spike in galvanized steel prices, which have jumped by about $7/cwt or $140 per ton in just the past […]
Galvanized steel prices have skyrocketed by more than $200 per ton since August, leaving wholesalers who serve the HVAC market to wonder how much higher the price can possibly go before it begins to cut into demand. On a conference call this morning, members of the Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) said […]
Demand remains strong even as galvanized steel prices have topped $900 per ton, reported members of the Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International in a conference call this morning. But the HARDI members—wholesalers who serve the HVAC market—expressed concern about the tight availability of galvanized steel and fear of running low on supplies. “We are […]
Metals service center Olympic Steel welcomes Damon J. Wos as the new General Manager for the Schaumburg, Ill., and Gary, Ind., facilities. Wos joined the industry in 2000 at Central Steel & Wire and most recently led the commercial and marketing efforts for Charter Steel Trading Inc. He holds a bachelor and master’s degree in […]
U.S. Steel expects another loss in the third quarter of 2020, but not as deep as in the second quarter. The steelmaker anticipates a $100 million adjusted EBITDA loss for the quarter compared to a loss of $264 million in Q2. The flat rolled segment is expected to be negative, but “significantly better” than Q2. Order […]
Steel Dynamics Inc. is expecting third-quarter 2020 earnings to be slightly better than the previous quarter due to stronger results from recycling and steel fabrication operations and lower costs associated with construction of the new mill in Sinton, Texas. Steel operations earnings are expected to be lower in the third quarter. The division experienced metal […]
Paragon Steel has broken ground on a 43,000-square-foot addition to one of its two plants in Butler, Ind., on the campus of Steel Dynamics Inc. The $8.3 million expansion will house a new high-performance Braner/Loopco slitting line that will give the service center the capability to process next-generation, high-strength steel grades. The automated triple-turret-head slitting […]
Safety protocols and measures were deployed at AM/NS Calvert as Hurricane Sally made its way across the Gulf Coast this week. ArcelorMittal anticipates a two-day outage as result of difficult conditions in the communities surrounding the facility. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to our workforce, their families and communities that may be impacted by […]
Demand and pricing improved late in the third quarter, said Nucor in earnings guidance issued Thursday. Continued resiliency of the nonresidential construction market has resulted in a strong performance for Nucor’s downstream products. Steel segment earnings are expected to be similar to second quarter. Nonresidential construction is also benefiting Nucor’s bar and structural mills, but market conditions […]
JSW Steel USA will idle its Baytown, Texas, plate mill, citing recent changes to quotas of semifinished steel imports from Brazil. “While on the journey to becoming a ‘melted and manufactured in the USA’ company, JSW utilized the imported slab quota system put in place by the administration to support operations at our Baytown, Texas, […]
Canadian steel producer Stelco Holdings is nearing the finish line on its comprehensive blast furnace upgrade and reline project at Lake Erie Works in Nanticoke, Ontario. The project is current on budget and on schedule for completion in early October 2020. The upgrades will create “what we believe will be the first smart blast furnace […]
The global steel industry is one of the biggest culprits in the climate change debate, responsible for some 7 percent of harmful carbon dioxide emissions each year. Every ton of steel produced in 2018 released 1.85 tons of carbon into the atmosphere. Thus the steel industry is under enormous pressure to reduce its carbon footprint. Fortunately, […]
U.S. steel mills have numerous maintenance outages planned between now and the end of the year. The list below was compiled from anecdotal reports from service centers, as mills usually don’t comment on such outages for competitive reasons. These outages are generally routine and short of duration. Individually, they are unlikely to have much impact on […]
By CRU Research Manager Paul Butterworth, from CRU’s Steel Raw Materials and Steel Costs CRU price and cost forecasts suggest that the steel sector generally will return close to steady-state, or “through-cycle,” levels of profitability over the five-year forecast period. However, as our analysis highlights, steady-state profitability of individual steel mills has varied widely in […]
Nucor’s Plate Group announced a new minimum base price yesterday “to provide an increased level of clarity and transparency to our plate product pricing.” The company added: “This price change reflects continued increases in input costs and changing market dynamics.” Effective immediately, Nucor’s new minimum base price is $29.50/cwt ($590 per net ton), freight included. […]
The strike by United Steelworkers Local 1016-03 at NLMK Pennsylvania is in its second week. NLMK issued a press release on Tuesday addressing some of the questions the public has asked regarding operations and negotiations. The facility in Farrell continues to operate, manned by salaried employees. The company is finishing production of coils that were […]