Steel Market Update asked steel buyers this week to respond to the following question: Do you believe a floor has been put on prices and they will rise from here? Here are some of the responses received: “A floor is possible, but I fear that if we see the expected downward move for scrap prices […]
It has been some time since we shared comments from one of our trading friends located in China. There have been significant changes in the Chinese steel industry, and the U.S. tariffs on China are having an impact, according to our source. Here is what he had to say: “The Chinese market has not flexed […]
On Oct. 8-9, 2019, Steel Market Update will conduct our next Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshop in Cincinnati, Ohio. This workshop will include a tour of the Nucor Steel Gallatin Mill. Why do companies send employees to our Steel 101 workshops? Because they receive a broader understanding of: How steel […]
A note this morning from one of my scrap friends: “Btw, we are not getting too excited just yet, the scrap market is clearly beginning to bottom a bit. Should strengthen a little in August.” I am getting mixed messages on lead times, but I think the consensus is lead times have moved out […]
This week I will be working with steel buyers (and steel mills) to see how the price increase on flat rolled is being received. As is normal when lead times are short and price announcements are made, many mills held pricing through the end of last week for those who had outstanding quotes or needed […]
We are passing through 750 executives registered for the 2019 SMU Steel Summit Conference, which will be held in Atlanta on Aug. 26-28. We continue to be on track to exceed the 912 executives we reached during last year’s conference. Our conference has become the premier steel conference in North America for many reasons: Networking: […]
There seem to be more questions than answers regarding the move by the domestic flat rolled steel mills to increase spot base pricing on hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized and Galvalume steels. The move was taken as the low end of the benchmark hot rolled steel base pricing was dipping below $500 per ton. The […]
As a supporter of youth in the steel industry, we would welcome your nominations for the SMU NexGen Leadership Award – sponsored by the Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA). This is a great opportunity to shine the light on the hard work of the talented individuals (age 35 and younger) in your organization and celebrate it with the greater […]
I am being asked for my opinion regarding the price increase announcements, and specifically if the increases will “stick”? The announcements are not a surprise to me as some of our data was showing service center spot pricing in the area of “capitulation” (more than 75 percent of the service centers dropping spot prices to […]
As I expected, Nucor came out with a $40 per ton ($2.00/cwt) price increase on flat rolled this afternoon. This is the first Nucor price increase since Feb. 20, 2019. Shortly after the Nucor announcement, USS/POSCO followed with an increase letter of their own and then NLMK USA put out a letter identifying the minimum […]
The day started slow, but it seems to have picked up steam after the Nucor announcement. As expected, most of the mills have followed the Nucor lead with NLMK putting specific base prices into the market. The guidance being given in the NLMK announcement is hot rolled at a $560 per ton ($28.00/cwt) minimum base […]
One thing is certain in this crazy steel market, service centers are taking their spot prices lower and lower as each week passes. Manufacturing companies are almost unanimous in their view that flat rolled steel distributors are decreasing their spot offers. We saw 93 percent of the manufacturing companies responding to last week’s SMU flat […]
We are starting to receive nominations for the 1st SMU NexGen Leadership Award. We will accept nominations through Aug. 1. Remember, we are looking for those amongst you who have been innovative, creative problem solvers, perhaps creating new systems or leading through troubled times. There are an unlimited number of reasons to nominate one of […]
The construction segment of the market is booming. This is what we heard from the HARDI steel conference call we participated in last week, and it is what we heard from many companies over the two days SMU was in New York City earlier this week. Whenever we travel, one of the things we always […]
More than 700 executives are registered with slightly more than two months to go before the start of the 2019 SMU Steel Summit Conference. We continue to see strong interest in this year’s event, which will be held in Atlanta, Ga., on Aug. 26-28. Once again, the Georgia International Convention Center (www.gicc.com) will be the […]
More than 700 executives are registered with slightly more than two months to go before the start of the 2019 SMU Steel Summit Conference. We continue to see strong interest in this year’s event, which will be held in Atlanta, Ga., on Aug. 26-28. Once again, the Georgia International Convention Center (www.gicc.com) will be the […]
There were many questions raised earlier this week about the announced new steelmaking and rolling capacities and whether those projects would indeed continue through completion. The questions came during various steel meetings held by analysts, steel mills, CRU and others in New York City. I participated in three events and found the question brought up […]
Last night, Steel Market Update participated in the annual Bank of America Merrill Lynch dinner hosted by metals and mining analyst Timna Tanners. We also spoke at the CRU Steel Briefing a little earlier in the day. Here are some of the key takeaways from those meetings. Mill Lead Times Short Flat rolled steel mill […]
I have been in New York City where one of the competitors of Steel Market Update was conducting a steel conference. There were a number of satellite mini-conferences surrounding the NYC event. I attended three of them: the CRU Steel Briefing, which attracted about 100-150 executives; the Bank of America Merrill Lynch dinner drawing a […]
Please feel free to forward this issue of Steel Market Update to your customers, suppliers or executives within your company. The 2019 SMU Steel Summit Conference will be held at the Georgia International Convention Center. The dates for the conference are: Aug. 26-28, 2019. The convention center and the Gateway Hotels (Marriott Gateway, Renaissance and […]
Happy Father’s Day to all of the fathers reading tonight’s issue. I will be in New York City participating in the CRU Steel Briefing, which will be held at the Sheraton Hotel in Manhattan on Monday afternoon. Later that evening I will be attending the Bank of America Merrill Lynch steel dinner hosted by Timna […]
2019 SMU NexGen Leadership Award – Frequently Asked Questions Question: What is the purpose of the award? Answer: To recognize the contributions being made by younger people in various roles in manufacturing, fabrication, steel distribution, steel mills, trading companies – essentially any company that handles mild carbon (coil, sheet or plate) or automotive steels. Steel […]
2019 SMU NexGen Leadership Award – Frequently Asked Questions Question: What is the purpose of the award? Answer: To recognize the contributions being made by younger people in various roles in manufacturing, fabrication, steel distribution, steel mills, trading companies – essentially any company that handles mild carbon (coil, sheet or plate) or automotive steels. Steel […]
Our website has been updated with the correct complete agenda and speakers, and we have added more detailed information about the SMU NexGen Leadership Award. We have also updated the sponsors and exhibitors logos for the 2019 SMU Steel Summit Conference on our website. We have updated the names of the companies attending (those showing […]
A higher percentage of manufacturing companies and flat rolled steel service centers are reporting distributors as continuing to lower spot pricing to their customers. We have now passed through the mythical “capitulation” level and we will explain what that means in a moment. First, we saw 79 percent of the manufacturing companies responding to our […]
We intentionally pack the third day of our conference with powerhouse programs and speakers. This year will be no different and we highly encourage attendees to remain through the final agenda item on the program. 7:00 AM – Doors Open at the Georgia International Convention Center Coffee, soft drinks and pastries will be available in […]
2019 SMU Steel Summit Conference – Day 3 Written by: John Packard, President & CEO, Steel Market Update RE: 2019 SMU Steel Summit Conference, Aug. 26-28, 2019 – Location: Georgia International Convention Center, Atlanta, GA In Thursday’s issue of this past week, I laid out the first-day agenda and speakers, then on Sunday I did […]
Have you considered nominating that young up-and-comer in your organization for Steel Market Update’s NexGen Leadership Award? Deadline for nominations is Aug. 1. This is the first year for the award, which is designed to recognize truly exceptional emerging leaders, age 35 and under, for their extraordinary achievements. The honor is open to individuals employed in […]
Imported steel prices are no longer competitive with domestic steel mill pricing – even on light gauge galvanized and other specialty products that normally have gone to trading companies. Lead times are short, but as one steel executive put it to me this afternoon, “It’s not that the mills have no business. [For this time […]
Here we discuss the agenda, speakers and what we were thinking as we put together Day 2 of the SMU Steel Summit Conference, which is Tuesday, August 27, 2019. 7:00 AM to 8:00 AM – Doors Open at the Georgia International Convention Center Coffee, drinks and pastries will be available. Exhibition areas will be manned. […]