Contributor: Ethan Bernard

Ethan Bernard

Ethan Bernard is a reporter and editor for Steel Market Update. He previously worked for American Metal Market as a copy editor in the New York office for two years starting in 2008. Later, he copy edited AMM’s monthly magazine on a freelance basis from 2015 until 2017. With experience in financial copywriting and textbook publishing, he holds a BA in Comparative Literature from UC Berkeley, and an MFA. in Creative Writing from New York University. He can be reached at ethan@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7871.

Near-Term Economic Activity Remains Stable: PMA

Most metal formers predict business conditions will remain stable over the next three months, according to the July 2023 Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report.

JSW USA Fiscal Q1 Earnings Up on Higher Slab, Plate Sales

Indian steelmaker JSW Steel reported improved performance at its JSW Steel USA operations in the first quarter of its 2024 fiscal year.

Recent Buys Help ArcelorMittal's Q2 Earnings, But Shipments Slip

ArcelorMittal’s earnings increased sequentially in the second quarter of 2023, but fell on-year, with recent acquisitions in Brazil, Texas, and Mexico contributing to underlying performance.

Schnitzer Steel Changes Name to Radius Recycling

Schnitzer Steel Industries has changed its corporate name to Radius Recycling.

Nucor Sees Opportunities Beyond Steelmaking: Topalian

Nucor’s growth strategy goal “is not simply about being the biggest steel company,” Nucor chair, president and CEO Leon Topalian said.

GM's Higher Earnings Guidance Hinges on Successful Labor Pacts

General Motors (GM) has raised its full-year earnings guidance, but this depends on the outcome of its labor negotiations with the United Auto Workers (UAW) union in the US and Unifor in Canada.

Nucor Done With Over 50% of $10B CapEx Plan: Topalian

Nucor has completed slightly more than 50% of a $10-billion capital expenditures plan to grow its core steelmaking operations, Leon Topalian, company chair, president, and CEO, said in a second-quarter earnings conference call with investors.

Nucor Says Earnings Will Fall in Q3, Predicts Lower Profits at Sheet Mills

Nucor reported sequentially higher second quarter earnings but warned that results would be worse in the third quarter. "We expect earnings in the third quarter of 2023 to decrease compared to the second quarter of 2023," the company said in comments released with Q2 earnings results on Monday, July 24.

Current, Future Steel Buyers Sentiment Indices Run Even

SMU's Current and Future Steel Buyers Sentiment Indices are at parity, with current level and future ticking up, according to our most recent survey data.

Lock Joint Tube to Supply Solar Firm From New Texas Mill

Lock Joint Tube will supply steel tubing to solar energy company Array Technologies from a new mill in Texas.

USTR Meets with EU Official on Steel, Aluminum Deal

US Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai and a lead European Commission official met on Thursday in Brussels to discuss the Global Arrangement on Sustainable Steel and Aluminum, according to a press release from the USTR.

Workers At Cliffs' Northshore Mining Ops Join USW

Workers at Cleveland Cliffs’ Northshore Mining in Minnesota have joined the United Steelworkers (USW) union.

Mills More Willing To Negotiate Lower Sheet Prices: SMU Survey

Steel buyers report that mills are willing to negotiate lower spot prices for the sheet products SMU surveys.

Friedman Logs Strong Q4, Reports Record Full-Year Earnings

Friedman Industries has reported the most profitable fiscal year in its history as the steel processor and manufacturer posted strong fiscal fourth-quarter results. The Longview, Texas-based company swung to a profit of $6.3 million in its fiscal Q4 2023 ended March 31 vs. a net loss of $7.5 million a year earlier on net sales that […]

USS Expects Better Q2 Results, Big River Crucial to Q3

U.S. Steel expects stronger earnings in Q2 vs. the prior quarter but lower than a year earlier. The company also said the planned startup of an electrical steel line at its Big River Steel operation in Arkansas is crucial to Q3. The Pittsburgh based steelmaker on Monday released adjusted-net-earnings-per-diluted-share guidance of $1.81 to $1.86 for Q2. This […]

Cliffs Plans Burns Harbor BF Reline for 2025

Cleveland-Cliffs is planning a blast-furnace reline at its Burns Harbor operations in northwest Indiana in 2025, a company executive said. Discussing capital expenditures on a Q1 earnings conference call with investors on Tuesday, Cliffs EVP and CFO Celso Goncalves said the company expected cap-ex ~$700 million in 2023-24. “Now when you get to 2025 and […]

CRU: Court Accepts AHMSA's Bankruptcy Request, Investors Named

A Mexican court has declared steel sheet producer Altos Hornos de Mexico (AHMSA) bankrupt and appointed the National Chamber of Commerce of Muzquiz city, Coahuila state, as trustee. The determination, published in the country’s Official Gazette on April 17, follows the company filing a bankruptcy petition in January. The civil first court of the first instance in […]

ITC Votes to Drop Antidumping Duties on Steel Plate from Brazil

The US International Trade Commission (ITC) voted to remove antidumping duties on imports of Brazilian steel plate. The ITC on Monday, Jan. 10, ruled that imports of carbon and alloy steel cut-to-length plate from Brazil would not likely lead to continuation or recurrence of material injury within a reasonably foreseeable time. Brazil had been subject to […]

SMU Buyers Sentiment Indices Slip

Steel Market Update’s (SMU) Current Steel Buyers Sentiment Index and Future Steel Buyers Sentiment Index both edged down this week. SMU’s Steel Buyers Sentiment Indices measure how steel buyers feel about their company’s ability to be successful in the current market, as well as three to six months down the road. Every other week we […]

SMU Sentiment Index Rises Six Points

Steel Market Update’s (SMU) Current Steel Buyers Sentiment Index rose six points through Dec. 22 compared with two weeks earlier. Our Future Buyers Sentiment Index also jumped, edging up four points from the previous market check. Current Sentiment remains slightly above a month ago. SMU’s Buyers Sentiment Index measures how steel buyers feel about their company’s ability to […]

Daniel Tapped for Metalwest GM Role in Colorado

Metalwest, an NIM Group company, has named Eric Daniel as general manager of the flat-rolled distributor’s Colorado region, with responsibility for facilities in Brighton, Colo., and Albuquerque, N.M. Daniel started at Metalwest’s corporate purchasing team in 2015 as supply chain manager, became director of supply chain in 2018 and joined the NIM Group corporate purchasing […]