Contributor: Ethan Bernard

Canadian union Unifor kicked off negotiations with the Detroit 3 automakers today, with its president saying the “talks will be the most consequential and closely watched in decades.”

Canadian steelmaker Stelco reported lower results in the second quarter year over year on decreased average selling price per net ton and lower shipping volume, but earnings improved sequentially on higher average selling prices.

H2 Green Steel is partnering with global mining and metals company Rio Tinto and Brazilian miner Vale for the supply of direct-reduction iron (DRI) ore pellets for the company’s green steel production in Sweden. 

Steel shipments in the US rose year over year in June but decreased sequentially, according to the latest figures from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).

SMU's Current and Future Steel Buyers Sentiment Indices have both fallen this week from the last market check, according to our most recent survey data.

The percentage of respondents saying mills were willing to negotiate price rose on all sheet products and plate this week, according to SMU's most recent survey data. 

August could see US scrap prices stabilizing, or even rising, depending on the grade or region, scrap sources told SMU.

Ryerson said it expected demand to weaken in the near term after it reported a slump in second-quarter earnings.

Mexican steelmaker Altos Hornos de México (AHMSA) said there could be an “indefinite” delay to the restart of production because of a blockade by activists.

Nucor has received its final federal permit to begin construction on its sheet mill in Mason County, W.Va.

The LME aluminum three-month price is moving higher again, closing the week on the morning of July 28 at $2,215 per tonne. The previous day, the price dropped sharply at the close and briefly moved below $2,200/t. The next day the price was seen increasing again, suggesting support at $2,200/t has once again been regained. 

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.

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

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 Industries has changed its corporate name to Radius Recycling.

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

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 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 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.

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

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

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

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]