ArcelorMittal announced it will change its organizational structure to one of regional management in order to simplify how the company is run. The reorganization will allow each business to follow its own strategy and focus for product specialization. The Group Management Board will be as follows: – Lou Schorsch , CEO of Flat Carbon Americas […]
Worthington Industries plans to close their Essex facility in Baltimore County, located near the former Sparrows Point steel site, by the end of its fiscal year, May 31, 2014. The closing will result in the layoff of 54 employees. The company filed the following SEC report: On December 10, 2013, the Steel Processing Segment (“Worthington […]
Earnings for the shipping market are bullish right now according to the Dec. 4 MID-SHIP Report, with continued optimism for next year’s market. Average earnings for forward freight agreements in 2014 are expected to increase by 13 percent for Handysize, 18 percent for Supramax, 22 percent for Panamax and 28 percent for the Cape market. […]
If by chance you are celebrating the holidays on the North Coast you may catch a glimpse of the newest lake freighter, the Algoma Equinox as she slides in and out of port on the Great Lakes and its tributaries. The Algoma Equinox is the newest of a fleet of ships commissioned by Algoma Central […]
Michael Wagner has been appointed Chief Sales and Marketing Officer at Essar Steel Algoma, pending regulatory approval. Wagner most recently served as Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer at SeverCorr where he was a founding member in 2005. He began his career at Bethlehem Steel and moved on to progressively advanced roles at Nucor […]
Brazilian mining company, Vale SA, plans to sell its share of CSA owned by ThyssenKrupp according to a report published by the Wall Street Journal. Jose Carlos Martins, head of Vale’s Ferrous division and Strategy told WSJ that Vale typically invests in Brazilian steel plants to increase domestic steel production and then sells its share […]
New residential sales in October soared 25.4 percent above the revised September rate of 354,000 to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 444,000. In comparison, the October 2012 annual estimate was 365,000, a 21.6 percent increase year-over-year. The surge beat economist expectations ranging from 425,000 to 429,000 sales for the period. The median sales price […]
Horizon Steel Company, plans to build a 90,000 square foot service center facility in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The $15 million project is expected to provide 30 new full-time positions in the region. The facility will be part of a co-located operation that will span approximately 150,000 square feet in the Kentucky Transpark and will also […]
ThyssenKrupp AG exceeded its target of positive EBIT for the 2012-2013 fiscal year, ending September 30, by 100 million euros. EBIT for the fiscal year was 599 million euros ($815 million) said management at the annual press conference. Operating losses and impairment charges for Steel Americas (re-included in the fiscal year as a continuing operation), […]
Steel buyers are showing a little less confidence that the trend for general economic activity will improve in the next six months according to the ISM Steel Buyers Survey for November. The percentage of buyers who believe activity will remain the same increased from 46.2 percent to 66.7 percent this month with the balance expecting […]
US automakers had a stellar month, beating analyst auto sales forecasts with November sales of 1,238,322 vehicles. The seasonally adjusted annualized rate for November soared to 16.4 million, well above 15.3 million a year ago. General Motors delivered 212,060 vehicles in November, its highest November sales in six years. Retail sales were up 19 percent […]
The Empire State Manufacturing Index business conditions held steady for New York manufacturers in October. The general business index fell 5 points to 1.5 but remained in growth status. The new orders index rose 5 points while shipping fell 3 points, suggesting modest increases for both indexes for the month. New York manufacturers continued to […]
US Steel announced the election by the board of directors of David S. Sutherland to the position of independent, non-executive chairman effective Jan. 1, 2014. Sutherland will replace executive chairman John Surma who will retire on Dec. 31. US Steel split the roles of CEO and chairman when Mario Longhi succeeded Surma as CEO in […]
The JP Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI rose to 53.2 in November from 52.1 in October, indicating a faster improvement in overall operating conditions. Manufacturing output and new orders rose at the quickest pace since February 2011. A moderate rise in employment was reported the US, Japan, the UK, India, Taiwan, South Korea, Turkey, Vietnam, Canada […]
The November ISM Report for November 2013 indicated expansion in the manufacturing sector for the sixth consecutive month and the highest PMI (purchasing mangers index) reading for the year. The PMI registered 57.3 percent, up from 56.4 percent in October. Indices for new orders, production, employment and exports picked up their pace of growth in […]
The anticipation over the fate of ThyssenKrupp Steel Americas is finally over with the sale of the Calvert, Alabama mill to joint venture partners ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corporation. The $1.55 billion sale gives ArcelorMittal a firm foothold in the Southeast and in the NAFTA auto market. Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal […]
A fire at Republic Steel in Lorain, Ohio injured five people and destroyed three floors within the plant before being contained on Saturday. The victims suffered smoke inhalation, first degree burns and broken bones. The fire started just before 2:30 pm on Nov. 30 when a spark or heat ignited the oxygen supply of the […]
The Fifth District Manufacturing Index surged to 13 in November from an index reading of 1 in October. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, almost all business activity indicators rose except for capacity utilization and backlog of orders, which were flat for the month. The index for shipments advanced 18 points while the […]
The S&P/Case Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index rose 11.2 percent year-over-year for its highest level since 2006, according to data compiled through September 2013. On a quarter-over-quarter basis, the third quarter index rose 3.2 percent. The index is based on the annual returns of 10-City and 20-City Composites. Twelve of the 20 cities posted […]
Shipping markets in the Gulf are seeing some strong rates as producers are anxious to fix and load cargoes before the holidays and year end according to the November 20th MID-SHIP Report. Shipping rates in the The Cape and Panamax markets have eased in the past two weeks but Chinese steel mill restocking of iron […]
Tenth District: Manufacturing activity and expectations for future growth grew modestly in the Tenth District in November according to a survey conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. The index for new orders surged from 3 to 15, month-over-month, and indices increased for order backlogs and employment. Indices fell in production, shipments, new […]
Existing home sales fell in October but low inventory continues to drive home prices upward said the National Association of Realtors in their November report. Existing housing inventory stood at 2.13 million homes at the end of October—a drop of 1.8 percent from last month. Home sales fell 3.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual […]
After three months of increases, the Architecture Billing Index dropped to 51.6 in October from 54.3 in September, indicating a slower pace of growth for construction design activity. The new project inquiry index, an indicator for future demand, rose to 61.5 from 58.6 last month. Calculated on a three month moving average, the regional averages […]
Worthington Industries is poised to take advantage of the natural gas boom through production of pressure cylinders and gas processing units. About a third of Worthington’s profits are derived from their pressure cylinder segment. Worthington has five Ohio facilities and, with proximity to the Marcellus and Utica shale plays, has begun the manufacture of cryogenic […]
Canadian manufacturing sales rose 0.6 percent to $49.9 billion in September according to the November release by Statistics Canada. Sales were at their highest level since June 2012 mostly due to gains in the automobile and food industries. Volume sales gained 1.0 percent for the month, a positive indicator for economic health. Of the 21 […]
Global steel prices may have finally bottomed out, said Severstal CFO Alexey Kulichenko. Severstal sees a slow recovery in store for 2014 with steel prices similar to those in 2013. “We don’t really believe there is more room for going down, so we think on average maybe we have reached the bottom,” said Kulichenko said […]
Metalforming companies expect improved business activity for the next three months after expressing pessimism in October. The November 2013 Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report showed an uptick in the number of survey respondents who anticipate improvement in business conditions as well as improvement in new orders. Average daily shipping levels were above levels […]
Severstal NA reported sales volume increased 2.6 percent quarter-over-quarter to 1.2 million tonnes in the third quarter due to improved sales of CRC and galvanized products. Revenue was reported at $993 million, up 4.2 percent from $953 million in the second quarter. Higher sales volume and pricing along with lower costs at Severstal Columbus resulted […]
An industrial accident at ArcelorMittal Indiana Harbor West killed a contractor and injured two co-workers on Wednesday morning. The contractors were working in the No. 3 steel production facility, formerly the LTV steel mill, when they were hit by falling debris. “ArcelorMittal is extremely saddened to confirm a fatal incident involving a contractor at the […]
Cia Siderúrgica Nacional SA (CSN) reported a record third quarter with net revenue of $4.7 billion reais ($2.02 billion) , up 15 percent from the second quarter and 23 percent from third quarter 2012. EBITDA rose 51 percent from second quarter to $1.7 billion reais ($731 million) due to strong performance in its steel and […]