Written by: Sandy Williams SMU has noticed a rise in zinc prices on in the spot market over the past six months. Zinc is used as the anti-corrosion coating for galvanized steel. Over the past six months, Zinc spot pricing on the LME hit a low around $0.82 per pound at the end of October […]
Written by: Sandy Williams ThyssenKrupp announced it will reduce its European workforce by 2000 employees with a possible 1800 dismissals to follow. The reduction is part of its “Best in Class—reloaded” (BiC) optimization program aimed at saving $670 million by the next fiscal year and improving competitiveness in the European market. The program includes restructuring […]
“’Europe’s steel mills face obsolescence and steelmakers may quit the region if politicians continue to prevent restructuring and capacity cuts in the sector’ said Wolfgang Eder, the chief executive of Austrian specialty steelmaker Voestalpine and president of the European Steel Association, or Eurofer.” (Wall Street Journal) Eder’s comment comes on the heels of the announcement […]
Written by: Sandy Williams Swedish steelmaker SSAB reported EBIT for its American division of $17.6 million in the fourth quarter, down 73 percent from $64 million in 2011. Earnings for the full year were reported at $243 million, down from $327 million in 2011. Demand in the fourth quarter was in line with the third […]
Written by: Sandy Williams ArcelorMittal closed a difficult year with a net loss of $3.73 billion for 2012. The loss included a $4.3 million write-down on its European assets and a $1.3 billion loss from idled and closed plants during restructuring. In comparison, net income was $2.3 billion in 2011. “2012 was a very difficult […]
Written by: Sandy Williams U.S. Steel announced today that Patrick J. Mullarkey has been named the new plant manager of Fairfield Tubular Operations in Birmingham, Ala. Mullarkey will succeed Dennis Quirk who has retired following 36 years of service. “Dennis has served our company well during times of critical change with his extensive and varied […]
Written by: Sandy Williams The JPMorgan Global Manufacturing PMI was at a ten month high in January—rising three months in a row and posting at 51.5. Growth was led by the U.S. and Mexico, with China also showing its highest output in two years. Emerging markets did well but Europe and Japan dominated the lower […]
Written by: Sandy Williams ThyssenKrupp AG seems to make steel industry headlines almost every day, only most of the news is bad news. Dr. Heinrich Hiesinger, Chairman of the Executive Board summed things up pretty well in his opening remarks at the December press conference. The facts are as follows: Our company has been pilloried […]
Written by: Sandy Williams In the January ISM Steel Buyers Survey, 50 percent of respondents said they had enough inventory on hand to cover 1-2 months (a decrease of 11 percent in December), while 33.3 percents had inventory to cover 2-3 months (up from 15.4 percent last month). Inventory on hand year-over-year was reported as […]
Written by: Sandy Williams Ira Rennert has been given a reprieve from a potential suit from RG Steel Creditors—at least for now. After seeking court permission to sue the Renco Group founder for deliberately delaying the bankruptcy filing of RG Steel in order to protect his own financial interests, the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors […]
Written by: Sandy Williams U.S. Steel celebrated the start-up of a new battery of environmentally friendly coke ovens at its Clairton plant on Thursday. The $500 million improvement project replaces three 50 year old coke ovens with new technology designed to significantly reduce emissions and improve the region’s air quality. The C Battery construction was […]
Written by: Sandy Williams The New Year began with promise for U.S. manufacturers. The ISM Manufacturing PMI registered 53.1 percent in January signaling expansion in the manufacturing sector for the second consecutive month and increasing 2.9 percent from December’s seasonally adjusted rate of 50.2. The overall economy rose for the 44th consecutive month according to […]
Written by: Sandy Williams One of the biggest drivers of steel usage – particularly galvanized steel – is in the automotive segment of the industry. The automotive industry has been helping keep the steel industry afloat since the recession hit and each year since 2009 the industry has both sold and produced more cars and […]
Written by: Sandy Williams The Chicago Purchasing Managers Index registered 55.6 in January, a 5.6 point increase from last month and the highest level since April 2012. Business Activity surged in production to 60.9 and new orders to 58.2, both 10 month highs. Employment registered 58.0, up 4.2 points from December and the largest gain […]
Written by: Sandy Williams Severstal NA sales of rolled products rose 17 percent in 2012 to 4.46 million tonnes (4.9 million net tons), up from 3.8 million tonnes (4.18 million net tons) in 2011. Fourth quarter sales were at 967,265 tonnes (1.06 million net tons), down 10 percent from the previous quarter. In 2012, Severstal […]
NLMK USA sales in 2012 grew 5 percent to 1.742 million tonnes (1.920 million net tons) from 1.658 million tonnes in 2011 (1.827 million net tons). Of the total, NLMK Indiana had a record hot rolled steel output of 725,000 tonnes (799,175 net tons), a 19 percent increase year-over-year. The balance of the hot rolled […]
Written by: Sandy Williams Caterpillar Inc. had its best year on record for sales and profit. Revenue for 2012 was $65.875 billion, up 10 percent from 2011. Earnings per share were $8.42, up 15 percent compared with last year despite an impairment charge related to a Chinese acquisition. Fourth quarter revenues were at $16.075 billion, […]
Written by: Sandy Williams New orders and shipments for manufactured durable goods both rose in December. New orders increased $10 billion or 4.6 percent to $230.7 billion, rising for the fourth consecutive month according to figures released by the Department of Commerce. New orders have been up seven of the last eight months, with transportation […]
Written by Sandy Williams United States Steel Corporation reported a net loss of $50 million for the fourth quarter of 2012 compared to net income of $44 million in the third quarter and a net loss of $211 million in fourth quarter 2011. Total earnings for the year 2012 showed a net loss of […]
Written by: Sandy Williams Nucor Corporation announced today that fourth quarter earnings were $136.9 million and flat compared to net earnings of $137.1 million in the same quarter of 2011. Earnings were up in the fourth quarter from $110.3 million in the third quarter of 2012. Total net earnings for 2012 were $504.6 million, compared […]
Written by: Sandy Williams Steel Dynamics doubled its fourth quarter earnings from last year. Net income was $60.57 in fourth quarter 2012 compared to $30.20 million in 2011, and $13 million in third quarter 2012. Results included a positive tax adjustment of $16 million. Steel shipments for the quarter dropped slightly from 1.464 million tons […]
Written by: Sandy Williams AK Steel reported net loss of 230.4 million for the fourth quarter 2012 compared to a net loss of 193.9 million in fourth quarter of 2011. Results include a pre-tax pension corridor charge of $157.3 million and a non-cash income tax charge of $96.4 million. Excluding these charges AK Steel […]
Written by: Sandy Williams Moody’s cut ThyssenKrupp’s credit rating to “junk” status reported Reuter’s on Thursday. Continued cash losses in the ThyssenKrupp Americas business and challenging market conditions were cited for the downgrade. Moody’s said the Steel Americas current market value may be lower than the 3.9 billion Euros ($5.25 billion) written down last year […]
Written by: Sandy Williams The American Iron and Steel Institute commended Ambassador Ron Kirk for his cooperation with the steel industry during his four years of tenure in the Administration. AISI President and CEO Tom Gibson issued the following statement. “Ambassador Kirk is a dedicated public servant who helped lead U.S. trade policy at a […]
Written by: Sandy Williams Buyers bought less new homes in December but overall sales were the best since 2009. New home sales dropped to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 369,000—7.3 percent below the revised November rate of 398,000, but 8.8 percent above the December 2011 estimate of 339,000, according to data released by the […]
Written by: Sandy Williams New construction starts leapt 23 percent in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $530 billion according to data released by McGraw-Hill Construction. Total constructions starts for 2012 grew 6 percent to $463.6 billion for a moderate gain at a faster rate from the previous two years. Construction growth overall […]
Written by: Sandy Williams ArcelorMittal is permanently closing six finishing lines and a coke plant at its Liege facility in Belgium. A seventh line will be maintained only as a repairing line. The company announced in October 2011 that it would permanently idle its liquid phase at Liege due to over-capacity in Northern Europe. Liege […]
Written by: Sandy Williams ILVA Steel executive Fabio Riva, was arrested on Tuesday after turning himself over to British authorities. The arrest was based on a European warrant alleging failure to take precautions against work accidents, corruption of judicial acts, poisoning water or food and making false declarations according to Scotland Yard. Riva is a […]
Written by: Sandy Williams Too many mills and too little demand portend a poor year for the steel industry according to the latest Ernst & Young Global Steel Report. The biggest threat to the steel industry is excess capacity, not excess production, according to Mike Elliott, Ernst & Young Global Mining and Metals Leader. Although […]
Written by: Sandy Williams The Architecture Billings Index showed growth for the fifth straight month in December. The American Institute of Architects reported the ABI score at 52, down slightly from 53.2 in November. The ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The score reflects an […]