Tag: demand

Galvanized prices have tumbled from a month ago, and many market participants expect that trend to continue in July.

Flat Rolled = 60.6 Shipping days of supply Plate = 61.1 Shipping days of supply Flat Rolled US service center flat-rolled steel supply rose in May with a drop-off in shipments. At the end of May, service centers carried 60.6 shipping days of supply on an adjusted basis, up from 57.8 shipping days of supply […]

Steel Dynamics Inc. guided to significantly reduced second-quarter earnings as its steel operations have taken a hit from lower prices.

U.S. Steel has guided to lower second-quarter earnings both sequentially and on-year in "dynamic" spot price market.

The conventional wisdom is that sheet prices will trend down for the next few weeks (maybe the next two months) before rising again in August – around when lead times stretch into the busier fall months. We see that reflected in our survey results and in market chatter. And there are plenty of data points to choose from if you want to support of that position.

US drill rig activity eased further last week, now down to a two-and-a-half-year low according to the latest update from Baker Hughes. In contrast, Canadian counts inched higher and are now at a three-month high.

As the scrap market for June settles at lowered levels, let’s look at the situation for exports of ferrous scrap from the US East and Gulf coasts. Despite declines in the North American ferrous markets over the last two months, export prices have remained range-bound within a tight trading window. After a brief decline last […]

Pig iron prices have been trending higher in all key markets besides Europe. Limited exports from Brazil and Ukraine are contributing to higher prices in the USA, though soft demand cushioned a sharp price upswing. In the US, pig iron prices increased by $15 per metric ton (mt) m/m to $485/mt CFR NOLA. Buying activity […]

We’ve been writing a lot about sheet prices, and those for hot-rolled (HR) in particular, coming down. Here's one thing that hasn't dropped: The wide spread between HR and cold-rolled (CR) prices. That's what's in a chart below. And I'm using it as a rough proxy for galv and G'lume base prices as well

Trading activity for the CME HRC futures contract has been sporadic so far in June, with a few days seeing transacted volumes exceed 25,000 short tons (st), but overall activity remains muted. This follows a pattern that emerged over the course of May.

Crude oil prices are forecast to ease slightly through the remainder of the year, while natural gas prices are expected to move higher following recent lows

Domestic scrap prices have fallen in June for all grades tracked by SMU, with prime scrap sinking $30 per gross ton (gt) from May, according to scrap sources.

Steel Market Update’s Steel Demand Index moved up 2.5 points last week, though it remains in contraction territory and at one of the lowest readings in nearly a year, according to our latest survey data.

On Monday and Tuesday of this week, SMU polled steel buyers on an array of topics, ranging from market prices, demand, and inventories to imports and evolving market events.

US sheet prices continued to tick down this week as supply seems to outweigh demand, and deep discounts are not only for large-ton buys.

The USMCA is an important trade agreement, as long as the member countries honor its requirements. These were the sentiments echoed by top officials of the Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA) and Metals Service Center Institute (MSCI) during a press conference at their annual meeting last week in Scottsdale, Ariz.

Where do sheet prices go from here? How is the state of steel demand? And is the dip in prices we've seen just a case of the summer doldrums, or is it something more significant?

Oil and gas drilling activity in the US ticked down last week, remaining near a two-year low, according to the latest update from Baker Hughes. In contrast, the Canadian count inched higher and is now at a 10-week high.

The latest SMU market survey results are now available on our website to all premium members. After logging in at steelmarketupdate.com, visit the pricing and analysis tab and look under the “survey results” section for “latest survey results.” Historical survey results are also available under that selection. If you need help accessing the survey results, or if your company would like to have your voice heard in our future surveys, contact info@steelmarketupdate.com.

Sufficient inventories resulting in softer demand continued to drag down US longs prices this month. Furthermore, lower scrap prices in May added to the downward pressure and expectations for June scrap are turning increasingly bearish. Import interest was also limited, particularly as competition among domestic producers rose.

When it comes to steel decarbonization, we do not need to compromise our climate ambition to make the types of demanding steel products needed for our 21st-century economy. Nevertheless, many of the world’s highest-emitting steel producers and their allies would have you believe that one cannot be done without the other. They are wrong. They […]

It feels like the summer doldrums arrived a little earlier than usual this year. I know there had been rumors of a price hike. The prospect of a sharply lower June scrap trade probably didn't help the chances of that actually happening.

SMU’s Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Indices both rebounded sharply this week, according to our most recent survey data.

Movements in steel mill lead times were mixed this week, according to our latest steel buyers survey results. Service centers and manufacturers reported short to average production times, little changed from our last report.

Steel buyers found mills more willing to negotiate spot pricing this week on all products SMU tracks with the exception of Galvalume, according to our most recent survey data.

The suspense about the drop in ferrous scrap pricing for June has ended with Delta, Ohio-based North Star BlueScope entering the market at significantly lower numbers than most predicted.

US sheet prices remained on a downward course again this week amid chatter in some corners about a potential broader slowdown in demand. SMU’s hot-rolled (HR) coil price now stands at $730 per short ton (st) on average, down $20/st from last week and down $115/st from a recent high of $845/st in early April. […]

US manufacturing activity contracted in May for the second month in a row, according to the latest report from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM). After a brief expansion in March, ISM’s manufacturing index has since returned to contraction, where the manufacturing sector has been for 18 of the last 19 months. The ISM Manufacturing […]

There seems to be more question than usual about which way prices will go over the next few weeks. There is talk in some corners that Nucor’s announced $760 per short ton (st) for HR through mid-May, and subsequent increases marked a public attempt to call a price bottom. (Our price announcement calendar here is […]

Economic growth was modest, at best, from April through early May in most economic districts observed by the Federal Reserve.