The U.S. and European Union (EU) announced a deal this weekend that removes Section 232 tariffs on imports from the EU and replaces them with a tariff rate quota (TRQ) system. The agreement ends a dispute dating back to 2018 when President Trump imposed Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, and it heads […]
The U.S. and the European Union (EU) could reach a deal that would lead to the removal Section 232 tariffs from steel imports from the trade bloc as soon as this weekend, according to sources familiar with the matter. The two sides would most likely agree to a tariff rate quota, or TRQ, which would replace […]
This year’s third quarter was the best quarter on record for Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co., the nation’s largest service center organization. Reliance reported gross profit of $1.21 billion on sales of $3.85 billion in Q3. “Our resilient business model, favorable metal pricing trends and excellent execution combined to produce another quarter of record-setting financial […]
By Trade Attorney Lewis Leibowitz U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai has been traveling. She has a lot on her plate. In an effort to attract allies to the United States’ plan to rein in China, the U.S. has floated a proposal, according to reports, to replace the 25% steel and 10% aluminum tariffs with a […]
By CRU Analyst Helen O’Cleary, from CRU’s Zinc Monitor Zinc’s price started LME Week looking mildly bullish on short covering, with the 3-month official price settling at $3,246 /t on Oct. 12. By Oct. 15, it had reached $3,944 /t, turbocharged by news of smelter cutbacks in Europe due to soaring energy prices and the […]
In this year’s edition of CRU Breakfast – part of LME Week – we explored three key themes that shaped the commodities markets – the global economic and commodities outlook, the changing role of China, and Navigating ESG. All three themes have been central to many developments in the industry and remain equally crucial moving […]
The impact of the pandemic on the domestic construction sector cannot be overstated, as more than two-thirds of U.S. states have struggled to add jobs since the onset of the global health crisis. Only 14 states and the District of Columbia have increased construction jobs since February 2020, reports the Associated General Contractors of America […]
The U.S. will “move away” from Section 232 tariffs on steel from the European Union, Nucor’s top executive said. “What the final outcome looks like – whether it’s a tariff rate quota, we’ll wait and see,” Leon Topalian, president and CEO of the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker, said during a conference call with analysts on Thursday. […]
Prices for four of the seven steelmaking raw materials tracked in this SMU analysis increased over the last 30 days. Through Oct. 20, zinc prices shot up 24% over one month prior, iron ore prices rebounded 18% in one month’s time, aluminum prices rose 9%, and coking coal prices increased 8%. In that same time […]
Producer prices posted the smallest advance year-to-date in September, according to data released by the Labor Department. Despite supply chain snarls and shortages that have driven up manufacturing and shipping costs, the negligible expansion kept the historic climb for the index and subcategories for final demand going. Since the fall in early 2020, the composite […]
By Stephen Williamson, CRU Research Manager, Aluminum Aluminum prices went through the $3,000 per metric ton mark on the LME this week. Fueled by energy constraints in China and tightening supply of alloy hardeners, the price broke through the $2,950 ceiling and ran up another $200. The price leveled at $3,150 as of this writing […]
By Stephen Williamson, CRU Research Manager, Aluminum Last week’s aluminum price below $3,000 per metric ton on the LME seemed like a bargain until it ran above $3,300 earlier this week. Yet, at week’s end, trading fell back to $3,050. Further confounding the market is magnesium supply and the prices raging on the hardener front. […]
By CRU Advisor Greg Wittbecker LME cash aluminum prices have retreated hard from new 13-year highs, falling from $3,300 last week to reach $2,682 as we completed the week. Supply-side Price Concerns Get a Reality Check but Remain Dangerous Market euphoria over supply-side constraints ran into the effect of China’s “command economy” at work. Power […]
The prices contractors pay for construction materials rose further in September despite a recent decline in a few materials’ prices. The costs still far surpass the prices contractors charged in the 12-months ending in September, reports the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) in its latest analysis of government data. “Construction materials costs remain out […]
In its latest acquisition, Triple-S Steel Supply Co., Houston, has purchased BMG Metals, a steel distributor and metal superstore with five stocking locations throughout Virginia and Maryland. Steve Briggeman, a 21-year veteran of Triple-S, has been promoted to regional vice president. A resident of Knoxville, Tenn., Briggeman will oversee the new BMG business in addition […]
Kloeckner Metals Corp. will hold a groundbreaking ceremony next week for its second location in Mexico. The new, 84,000-square-foot facility will be in the central Mexican city of Querétaro and is expected to open in the spring of 2022, the Roswell, Ga.-based service center said. “Through this strategic investment we will be able to further […]
By Trade Attorney Lewis Leibowitz A reader turned me on to a recent column by former U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer. I have known Ambassador Lighthizer for quite a few years now. He is smart and an able advocate. But that does not mean we see eye to eye. The column, which appeared in the […]
Olympic Steel Inc.’s sale of its Detroit location to Venture Steel and its subsequent acquisition of Shaw Stainless & Alloys marked the latest step in a years’ long effort to pivot from roots in Midwestern carbon flat-rolled steel markets, the company’s top executive said. The Cleveland-based service center – while by no means exiting the region – […]
Olympic Steel Inc.’s sale of its Detroit location to Venture Steel and its subsequent acquisition of Shaw Stainless & Alloys marked the latest step in a years’ long effort to pivot from roots in Midwestern carbon flat-rolled steel markets, the company’s top executive said. The Cleveland-based service center – while by no means exiting the region – […]
Whether they believe steel prices are in for a sharp or a gradual correction, most of the service center and manufacturing executives responding to SMU’s latest survey agree the market is at a turning point. Here are a few of their recent observations: “Yes, I think we are at the inflection point. The market appears to be […]
Steel industry trade associations and other supporters of the Section 232 tariffs are strongly opposed to a bill introduced in Congress this week by U.S. Senators Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) called the Bicameral Congressional Trade Authority Act. Sponsors of the measure say it is designed to prevent potential presidential abuse of “national […]
The American Metals Supply Chain Institute (AMSCI) plans to commemorate its successful reorganization by hosting its 70th Annual Dinner Gala on Thursday, Nov. 4, at the Loews Hotel in New Orleans. Formerly the American Institute for International Steel (AIIS), AMSCI has expanded its mission from one focusing primarily on free and fair trade in steel […]
By CRU Economist Frank Eich and CRU Research Analyst Clifton Hoong As addressing climate change has become an increasingly urgent political priority, policy makers have been keen to develop the available tool kit to address this challenge. Within that tool kit, carbon pricing plays an important role as it has been identified as one of […]
Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. completed the acquisition of Merfish United, a master distributor of tubular building products, from One Equity Partners, a middle market private equity firm, effective Oct. 1. “We are excited to welcome Merfish United to the Reliance Family of Companies and to broaden our focus on adjacent business opportunities beyond traditional metals […]
The paralyzing blows from the semiconductor chip scarcity haven’t just been limited to automakers. Supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, and logistical constraints have been decimating the domestic manufacturing sector at a similar clip, as detailed in a recently released white paper by a coalition of four major manufacturing associations. The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturing […]
Steel prices gradually declined through the month of September, following one full year of increasing prices. Hot rolled steel prices decreased $35 per ton ($1.75 per cwt) throughout the month, with the SMU index averaging $1,920 per ton ($96.00 per cwt) as of last Tuesday. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator was adjusted to neutral the […]
By Trade Attorney Lewis Leibowitz While Section 232 has gotten a lot of attention in the last few years, the antidumping and countervailing duty laws have been the mainstay of protecting domestic industries from steel to aluminum to solar panels to auto parts for many years. In the runup to the 2020 election, the Commerce […]
By Trade Attorney Lewis Leibowitz The Section 232 tariffs are uppermost on people’s minds again, according to questions I’m getting from readers. My view is that the tariffs (and quotas and “monitoring”) have remained because of politics and the lack of ideas for reconciling the irreconcilable. We need a policy that protects domestic steel (and […]
By CRU Aluminum Advisor Greg Wittbecker Aluminum prices touched a 13-year high last week, flirting with $3,000 per metric ton on the LME. That throwback to 2008 is not a coincidence, corresponding to the last time that primary aluminum supply-demand balances were as tight as they are in 2021. In the period 2006 to first […]
By Stephen Williamson, CRU Research Manager, Aluminum Aluminum prices continue to flirt with $3,000 per metric ton on the LME. While off a bit, now at $2,866, recent upsets in the market make price volatility the norm in the near term. Energy curtailments in China exacerbate not only global aluminum supply but also silicon (Si) […]