By CRU Principal Analyst Erik Hedborg, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor Iron ore prices have risen in the past week and are currently trading at close to $220 /dmt. We see little change on the demand side and sources have mentioned that supply uncertainty is the main driver of the recent rally. On Tuesday, June […]
By CRU Analyst George Pearson from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor Sheet prices fell significantly in China and the Vietnamese import market in the last week and there were also smaller decreases in India. U.S. and European sheet prices continued to rise overall, although European trading activity was slower, and increases were smaller than we […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Erik Hedborg, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor Iron ore prices have continued to rise in the past week as a result of a combination of weaker seaborne supply and rising steel prices following the recent celebrations in China. On Tuesday, July 6, CRU assessed the 62% Fe fines price at $222.0 […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Erik Hedborg, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor Iron ore prices have fallen back to $200 /dmt as Chinese demand continues to weaken and the country’s ports have registered the highest level of iron ore inflow since Q1. On Tuesday, July 27, CRU assessed the 62% Fe fines price at $200.0 /dmt, […]
U.S. apparent steel supply rebounded to a 10-month high in January, up 2.9% to 8.01 million net tons, according to the latest U.S. Department of Commerce and American Iron and Steel Institute data. This is the highest level seen since March 2020 when apparent supply was 8.63 million tons. Recall that April and May of […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley from CRU’s Steel Metallics Monitor The CRU metallics price indicator (CRUmpi) rose by 14.4% m/m in March to 354.4, bouncing back above levels seen in January. China’s return to the steel market following New Year holiday celebrations there helped lift steel and scrap prices in Asia, while seasonally constrained […]
After declining 8% in December, U.S. steel exports recovered by 9% in January to 671,000 tons, according to recent U.S. Department of Commerce data. Of our six monitored product groups, the largest month-to-month increase went to cut-length plate products, up 17%. Galvanized exports increased 15% over December, and exports of coiled plates increased 13%. On […]
U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) closed out 2020 on an encouraging note with annualized growth of 4.1%, based on the second estimate from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). The second estimate included upward revisions to residential fixed investment, private inventory investment, and state and local government spending, partly offset by a downward revision to personal […]
Steel prices continued their upwards climb in the month of February, fueled by strong demand and tight supply. Hot rolled steel prices surpassed $1,200 per ton in the third week of the month, reaching levels never before seen. Steel Market Update’s hot rolled price index reached $1,210 per ton by the end of February, up […]
SMU contributor Tim Stevenson is a partner at Metal Edge Partners, a firm engaged in Risk Management and Strategic Advisory. In this role, he and his firm design and execute risk management strategies for clients along with providing process and analytical support. In Tim’s previous role, he was a Director at Cargill Risk Management, and […]
The extreme cold snap that hit the southern U.S. disrupted production at Ternium Mexico, causing the loss of approximately 80,000 tons of production and an estimated $40 million. The facilities are now back to normal operations, but because the mill is operating at full capacity, lost production cannot be made up, said CEO Maximo Vedoya […]
Auto assemblies in North America took a step back in January after seeing a strong end to 2020. Although the U.S. market continues to rebound from the effects of the pandemic, domestic light vehicle sales fell by 3.1% in January compared to year-ago levels, according to LMC Automotive (LMCA). Canada’s light vehicle sales were down […]
U.S. apparent steel supply rebounded significantly in December, up 6.4% to 7.79 million net tons, according to the latest U.S. Department of Commerce and American Iron and Steel Institute data. While supply levels have improved each month since May, recall that April and May were the two lowest levels seen in the last 10 years […]
After divesting most of its U.S. assets to Cleveland-Cliffs, ArcelorMittal is now focused on strategic growth, controlling costs and leading the industry on sustainability, the steelmaker claims. The company is targeting net-zero emissions by 2050 and looks forward to commissioning its Smart Carbon steelmaking technologies in Ghent in 2022. ArcelorMittal achieved its first sales for […]
After declining 8% the prior month, U.S. steel exports decreased another 8% in December, finishing off the last month of the year at 616,000 tons, according to recent U.S. Department of Commerce data. 2020 saw quite a swing in monthly export levels; the year started strong, nearing 700,000 tons in January through March. Then the […]
Canada has determined that plate imported from Germany and Taiwan has injured its domestic plate industry and will impose anti-dumping duties as a result. Plate from Turkey was exempted from the trade action because the volumes exported to Canada were found to be “negligible,” the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT) said. The decision–released late last […]
Auto assemblies in North America bounced back robustly and surpassed pre-pandemic levels to close out 2020. Despite a production shutdown in March to stop the spread of COVID-19, U.S. auto sales ended the year just slightly below the initial 16.7 million forecast at 16.4 million units, according to LMC Automotive (LMCA). U.S. Vehicle Sales Figure […]
Steel and scrap prices continued to climb throughout January, fueled by strong demand and tight supply. Hot rolled steel prices surpassed $1,000 per ton in the first week of the year, levels not seen in over a decade. Steel Market Update’s hot rolled price index reached $1,140 per ton by the end of January, up […]
Supply chain disruptions and material shortages slowed global manufacturing expansion in January. The J.P. Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI slipped to 53.5 last month from 43.8 in December and to a three-month low. Overall, however, the manufacturing sector remained robust with most nations reporting expansion in the sector. Production and new orders rose in January, but new […]
NLMK USA turned in a dismal quarter after cutting production in response to a months-long strike at the Pennsylvania mill and a dearth of duty-free slabs from the import market. Year-over-year, quarterly sales plummeted 22 percent to 370,000 metric tons and total sales for 2020 plunged 27 percent to 1.6 million MT, the company reported. […]
Manufacturing firms in 2021 will see a continuation of the growth trend that began last June, says a new forecast by the Institute for Supply Management. The December 2020 Semiannual Economic Forecast offers an optimistic outlook for revenues, operating capacity, capital expenditures and employment levels in 2021. “Manufacturing’s purchasing and supply executives expect to see strong […]
U.S. apparent steel supply continued its upwards crawl in November, up 0.4 percent to 7.32 million net tons, according to the latest U.S. Department of Commerce and American Iron and Steel Institute data. While supply levels have improved each month since May, recall that April and May were the two lowest levels seen in the […]
By CRU Analyst Sam Grant, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor Galvanized steel sheet equates to around 30% of refined zinc demand, making it the most significant first use for zinc globally. China is by far the world’s largest producer, responsible for 33% of the global total, with North East Asia, North America and Europe […]
The upward trend in mill shipments and supply of sheet products continues, although the pace fell off as the fourth quarter carried on. After reaching bottom in June, as a result of the global pandemic, mill shipments and supply maintained a slow but steady upward trajectory through November 2020. This analysis is based on steel […]
By CRU Senior Analyst Erik Hedborg, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor In the past week, iron ore has witnessed its steepest price fall since July 2019. Declining steel margins in China and mills having successfully built up inventories, in combination with an upcoming Chinese New Year (CNY) holiday, resulted in weaker buying interest. Supply side […]
By CRU Chief Economist Jumana Saleheen and CRU Principal Economist Alex Tuckett, from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor After years in which inflation has been low in major economies, financial markets are becoming increasingly concerned about high future inflation. In this Special Feature, we examine a number of factors which could be inflationary over the […]
By CRU Economist Ippolito Tarabini and Multi-Commodity Analyst Zanna Aleksahhina, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor There is a global semiconductor shortage. It was ignited by strong demand for consumer electronics during the COVID-19 pandemic and it is now threatening auto production around the world. We expect it to reduce global vehicle output by around […]
By CRU Prices Analyst George Pearson, from CRU’s Steel Sheet Products Monitor Chinese sheet prices reached a new high this week after a government policy notice on March 2 notifying of emissions production cuts in Tangshan province in late-February to late-March. We expect the impact of this announcement to be lower than the initial price rise suggests. In other regions, sheet prices globally have continued to rise, […]
By Greg Wittbecker, Advisor, CRU Analysis The grounding of the MV Ever Given in the Suez Canal has multiple repercussions on the global maritime supply chain, but it is especially acute for the aluminum market. Gulf Region Production is Important The Gulf Region in terms of aluminum production comprises Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and […]
By CRU Analyst Kevin Bai from CRU’s Steelmaking Raw Materials Monitor China has announced that it will remove the value-added tax (VAT) rebate it has historically applied to steel exports, alongside changes in import and export tariffs. This will increase the cost of exporting and discourage export volumes, which will help loosen a tight domestic […]