United Auto Workers are in their third week of a strike against General Motors. The back and forth of negotiations continue with the union reportedly rejecting a counterproposal offered by GM on Monday. In a letter to union representatives on Tuesday, Terry Dittes, UAW GM vice president and director, outlined the problems with the proposal: […]
U.S. auto sales slipped in September as leading Asian automakers Toyota and Honda reported double-digit declines. Toyota sales fell 16.5 percent and Honda, after a record August, saw sales drop 14.1 percent. Nissan reported a 17.6 percent plunge in sales. Subaru ended an amazing 93-month run of sales increases with a 9.4 percent drop in […]
U.S. Steel announced today it will acquire a 49.9 percent ownership interest in Big River Steel at a purchase price of $700 million with the intent to acquire the remaining shares within the next four years. U.S. Steel has committed financing to execute the transaction. The implied enterprise value of Big River is approximately $2.325 […]
The news today that U.S. Steel plans to purchase a 49.9 percent interest in Big River Steel, with an option to buy the rest within the next four years, surprised the market. But most of the steel buyers polled by Steel Market Update view the pairing of one of the nation’s oldest integrated producers with […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: These times can try our patience. This week was such a time. It featured a cornucopia of fast-paced events. They will probably end up affecting us all. I want to focus on two big issues: impeachment and foreign […]
By CRU Analysts Ruilin Wang and Kevin Bai China has released a draft emission control policy document for the 2019-2020 winter heating season (WHS). Although the overall target for air pollution control is tighter than last year, it will not lead to greater steel supply restrictions because: • Clear regional targets to meet ultra-low emission standards […]
The September Manufacturing ISM Report on Business showed further decline of the manufacturing sector. ISM’s PMI edged down 1.3 points to 47.8 from the August reading of 49.1. “This is the lowest reading since June 2009, the last month of the Great Recession, when the index registered 46.3 percent,” said Timothy R. Fiore, chairman of […]
U.S. Steel did what many analysts thought was impossible – they announced they are acquiring a 49.9 percent interest in Big River Steel. I wrote about this last week as a possibility and mentioned some of the reasons at that time why this deal might happen. According to Big River Steel’s announcement, the $700 million […]
Last week, President Trump revoked the federal waiver that had allowed California to set vehicle emissions standards that are more restrictive than the federal standards. California and 22 other states quickly sued the Trump administration in federal court over the states’ rights to protect their own air quality. The president’s move sets in motion a […]
Worthington Industries reported net sales of $855.9 million, a 13 percent year-over-year decline, and a net loss of $4.8 million for its fiscal 2020 first quarter, driven by lower volume and lower average selling prices in steel processing. Worthington was also hit by a pre-tax impairment and restructuring charge of $43.5 million primarily related to […]
The strike by 48,000 members of the United Auto Workers against General Motors extended through its fourth day on Thursday with reports of some progress, but much negotiation still to come. Suppliers to the nation’s largest automaker are reportedly starting to feel the effects of cancelled deliveries and lost sales, with some announcing layoffs and […]
Nucor expects a weaker performance from its steel mills segment in the third quarter due to lower prices for sheet and plate steel. “Although we still see stability in most of the end-use markets that we serve, there has been some softening in automotive, agricultural products and power transmission markets,” said the company in guidance […]
A potential strike by janitorial workers at General Motors may cause disruption at five GM plants, if autoworkers don’t strike first. The United Auto Workers is ending a contract extension on Saturday, Sept. 14, with janitorial services company Aramark, which coincides with the expiration of auto worker contracts with GM, Ford and FCA. Should a […]
Do plans by U.S. mills to add millions of tons of new steelmaking capacity over the next few years make a price-killing supply glut inevitable? That’s a question very much open to debate, as shown by the spirited exchange between three leading analysts during Steel Market Update’s Steel Summit Aug. 28 in Atlanta. Despite some […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Erik Hedborg Part two of our three-part series: What’s next for U.S. iron ore production? After a remarkably profitable 2018, the U.S. steel industry has suffered a setback in 2019 as steel prices have dropped sharply on weaker than expected demand. Steel margins have turned negative and production cuts have been […]
Steel Market Update is making adjustments to our Price Momentum Indicators on hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized and Galvalume steels. The pressure behind rising steel prices seems to be subsiding as lead times at most mills are reasonable (especially considering the maintenance schedules in place for September and October). Steel buyers are beginning to tell […]
August U.S. auto sales, minus the non-reporting Detroit Big 3, grew 12.2 percent from a year ago. Sales were strong for Asian manufacturers with most reporting double digit gains. Honda led the sales increase in August posting an 18 percent gain year-over-year. Nissan was next at 13 percent, followed by Hyundai at 12 percent and […]
Contract negotiations between the United Auto Workers and Ford, GM and FCA are facing unwanted outside pressures. As a precautionary strike vote is being taken at UAW locals, the FBI reportedly raided homes of UAW presidents in Ohio, California, Wisconsin, Missouri and Michigan as part of a government investigation into bribery allegations. United Auto Workers […]
Steel Market Update is pleased to announce the recipient of the first SMU NexGen Leadership Award is Meredith Meade at Tempel Steel Company. Ms. Meade was presented her award by Steel Manufacturers Association CEO Philip Bell. SMA sponsored this year’s award, which attracted 21 highly qualified nominees from 18 companies. The finalists for the award were Ms. […]
Steel Market Update is pleased to share this Premium content with Executive-level members. For more information on upgrading to a Premium-level subscription, email Info@SteelMarketUpdate.com. North American auto production exhibited the normal slowdown in July. This report is based on data from LMC Automotive for automotive assemblies in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The breakdown of […]
Material Sciences Corp. was named as one of five winners of the 2019 Altair Enlightment Award given to honor the greatest achievement in vehicle weight savings. MSC was honored for its MSC Smart Steel, a new multilayer steel laminate engineered as a direct substitute for low carbon steel stamped vehicle body parts. Offering a 20 […]
U.S. Steel Corp is citing lower pricing and waning demand for the temporary layoff of approximately 200 workers at its Great Lakes Works in Ecorse, Mich. In June, U.S. Steel announced that due to market conditions it would idle a blast furnace at Great Lakes as well as one at Gary Works in Indiana. At this […]
Electric arc furnace minimills may have a cost advantage in steel production today, but there are still 19 traditional blast furnaces going strong in the United States. Blast furnaces dominate about three-fourths of global steelmaking, but only three steel producers in the U.S. currently are using BF or basic oxygen furnace technology: U.S. Steel, ArcelorMittal […]
Nearly 1,000 executives are registered with just two weeks 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 on Aug. 26-28. Once again, the Georgia International Convention Center will be the home of this, our 9th […]
Steel Market Update is pleased to announce we have closed the nomination process for the 2019 SMU NexGen Leadership Award, and we have 21 solid candidates. Steel Market Update and the Steel Manufacturers Association want to say “well done” to each of the candidates and their nominating company. The judges will be reviewing the nominations […]
U.S. auto sales appeared to do well in July despite some cooling of the market. Toyota, Honda, Subaru and Hyundai all posted gains for the month. Although Ford, General Motors and FCA no longer report monthly data, analysts suggest that the Big Three also saw sales increase in July. Cox Automotive said the auto market […]
Olympic Steel executives expressed positive sentiments about the company’s performance during an “unusual” second quarter despite declines in both sales and income compared with the same period last year. The Cleveland-based service center reported quarterly net sales of $429 million, 5 percent lower than in second-quarter 2018. Net income for the quarter totaled $2.1 million, […]
AK Steel’s net sales for the second quarter declined by 4 percent to about $1.68 billion due primarily to lower shipments to the slowing automotive market. Yet the steelmaker’s earnings for the quarter reached $66.8 million, an improvement from the $56.6 million in Q2 2018, though down from $72.9 million in the prior quarter. Hot rolled […]
The European Union has prepared a list of nearly $40 billion (€35 billion) in U.S. goods it will hit with retaliatory duties should President Trump decide to impose tariffs of 25 percent on imported cars and auto parts. EU Trade Commissioner Cecelia Malstrom said the list of targeted goods has been raised from €20 billion […]
If you haven’t registered for the Premier Steel Conference in North America, then this is the time to do so. The Steel Market Update Events App, which all 900+ attendees have access to, was launched last week, meaning registered attendees are now busy organizing meetings with each other in advance to make the most of their time […]