Lewis Leibowitz, trade attorney and contributor to Steel Market Update, offers the following commentary on the latest developments in Washington: Following is a quick update on the new Section 301 China tariffs, which went into effect on July 6. China implemented its own 25 percent tariffs on a variety of U.S. exports to China. Soybean […]
Switzerland has added its name to the list of countries seeking World Trade Organization consultation with the United States regarding Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum products. The Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) initiated a dispute settlement procedure with the WTO today, July 10. Although Switzerland does not have a large metal […]
Flat rolled steel imports into the United States continue to decline. The three-month moving average (3MMA) for rolled product imports into the U.S. year over year was down by 11.3 percent as of June, according to Steel Market Update’s latest analysis of Commerce Department license data. This is an early look at June’s import volume […]
Steel executives canvassed by Steel Market Update this week reported that demand remains strong, though they are less confident about conditions later in the year. Many expressed concern about the tariffs and trade issues unfolding in Washington, difficulty with trucking and logistics, and the impact of high steel prices on their customers. Following are some […]
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce could normally be expected to support the policies of a “pro-business” president. But recent and proposed trade actions by the Trump administration threaten the nation’s economic resurgence and as many as 2.6 million American jobs, contend Chamber leaders. In a new analysis, the Chamber outlines the state-by-state impact of retaliatory […]
Global manufacturing is losing its momentum, said JP Morgan and IHS Markit in their latest Global Manufacturing PMI. The June PMI was at an 11-month low of 53.0 in June, still in expansion territory but at a gentler pace. Production grew at its slowest pace since July 2017 and new orders were at a 19-month […]
Detroit automakers reported higher sales in June as buyer enthusiasm for SUVs and pickup trucks continued. Ford sales for the month increased 1.2 percent year-over-year to 230,635 vehicles on purchases of SUVs and F-series trucks. Fiat Chrysler sales jumped 8 percent to 202,264 vehicles in June and General Motors, no longer reporting monthly sales, said […]
Canada’s retaliatory tariffs will go into effect on July 1 in response to U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum, said Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland on Friday. The tariffs on $12.6 billion of U.S. goods are equivalent to the value of steel and aluminum products hit by the Section 232 tariffs. Freeland, accompanied by Industry Minister […]
United Steelworkers at Algoma Steel have ratified a tentative agreement with Algoma’s secured creditors. Members of USW Local 2251 and salaried workers in USW Local 2724 voted to accept the agreement that includes no concessions and some gains, said union leaders. Algoma, formerly Essar Steel Algoma, has been in Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act proceedings since […]
The growth of U.S. gross domestic product slowed in first-quarter 2018, but on a trailing 12-month basis has improved for the last seven quarters. The third estimate of U.S. GDP growth in the first quarter was 2.00 percent, down from 2.87 percent in Q4 2017, according to the June 28 report by the Bureau of […]
The growth of U.S. gross domestic product has improved for the last eight quarters on a trailing 12-month basis and in second-quarter 2018 was the best since third-quarter 2014. The first estimate of the growth of U.S. GDP in this year’s second quarter was 4.1 percent, up from an upwardly revised 2.20 percent in the […]
U.S. scrap exports expanded by 31 percent in the first four months of 2018, while total global scrap trade has been trending up since Q1 2016. Steel Market Update performs this analysis quarterly to help readers understand the gyrations of the domestic scrap market and where the U.S. stands as a global player. This data […]
Steel imports fell by nearly a quarter from April to May as the Trump administration’s steel tariffs began to take effect, reported the American Institute for International Steel (AIIS). Imports fell 23.2 percent month-to-month to 2.89 million net tons, which was almost 16 percent lower than in May 2017. South Korea—which has agreed to a […]
Behlen Mfg. Co. is among many manufacturers who report strong demand for their products despite all the trade conflict making headlines in Washington. Based in Columbus, Neb., Behlen makes grain storage equipment, building systems and other fabricated metal parts. Behlen President and CEO Phil Raimondo is pleased with his company’s performance, but his pleasure is […]
Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs are causing collateral damage in the case of one high profile White House-favored manufacturer. Harley-Davidson announced Monday that because of EU tariffs in response to U.S.-imposed steel and aluminum tariffs, the company will shift production of motorcycles for EU destinations from the United States to international facilities. EU tariffs […]
On Tuesday evening, the U.S. Department of Commerce releases the import licenses collected by product and by country through that date. This week, the licenses were reported for the first 19 days of June 2018. After looking at the data (see story about June import trend in tonight’s issue of SMU), the head of commercial […]
In testimony before a skeptical and sometimes combative group of senators Wednesday, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross did his best to defend the Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum and the controversial trade policies of the Trump administration. Despite his assurances that the process of reviewing product exclusion requests is on track, members of the […]
The European Commission announced that $3.2 billion in tariffs (€2.8 billion) on imports from the United States will go into effect on Friday, June 22. The “rebalancing measures” include steel and aluminum, agricultural goods and various other products and will remain in effect for as long as the U.S. tariffs on steel aluminum are in […]
I am excited for you, our customers. I have been working closely with the CRU Group, and our members will begin to see some subtle changes to the articles we write. One will be the use of CRU data on such items as our Foreign vs. Domestic Price Spread articles, which we will publish in […]
Steel Market Update canvassed industry executives this week to gauge their expectations for steel prices and to see if they have felt any effects yet from the Trump administration’s tariffs on steel from Canada and Mexico. Most anticipate fallout from the tariffs in the coming weeks and months, including upward pressure on prices. Following are […]
Total rolled steel product imports declined in May, but increased by 24.1 percent from March through May, compared with the prior three-month period. Total rolled steel product imports in May declined by 18.8 percent following April’s 17.0 percent increase. Sheet products were down by 22.6 percent, longs were down by 8.9 percent and tubular goods […]
Is Canada really guilty of the trade inequity that President Trump charges? We looked at two product targets of the administration—dairy and automobiles—to find out. The office of the U.S. Trade Representative estimates trade with Canada in 2017 totaled $673.9 billion–$341.2 billion in exports and $332.8 billion in imports, for a goods and services trade […]
Are the markets’ fears of a trade war exaggerated or are their concerns justified? Popular economist Alan Beaulieu, president of ITR Economics, offers the following macroeconomic perspective: Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum coming into the U.S. from Canada, Mexico and the EU are a hot topic, and with good reason. The extension of […]
April apparent steel supply fell 1.1 percent over March to 9,829,298 net tons, according to the data released late last week. Although down this month, supply remains strong in comparison to the last three years or so. Apparent steel supply is calculated by adding domestic steel shipments and finished U.S. steel imports, then subtracting total […]
I am finally home long enough to gather my thoughts and hopefully get back to providing some insights into the flat rolled, plate and scrap markets from my perspective. There is obviously a lot of uncertainty connected to the Section 232 tariffs in both steel and aluminum. The Trump administration appears to have an intense […]
A new wrinkle has been revealed for those manufacturers seeking exclusions for steel and aluminum products from Brazil, South Korea and Argentina. The three countries, which have agreed to quotas in lieu of tariffs, are not eligible for any product exemptions. A spokesperson for the Commerce Department confirmed the restriction in an email to Inside […]
U.S. steel exports in April 2018 totaled 861,004 net tons (781,091 metric tons), down 0.9 percent from the month before, but up 0.4 percent from April 2017. Total exports have averaged around 835,000 tons over the last few months. The total April export figure is above the three-month moving average (average of February 2018, March […]
Lewis Leibowitz, trade attorney and contributor to Steel Market Update, offers the following update on trade events in Washington: Canada, Mexico and the nations in the European Union threatened to retaliate against Trump administration tariffs they consider grossly unfair and, true to their word, have announced tariffs of their own on a host of exports […]
Global manufacturing was at a nine-month low in May, according to data from J.P. Morgan and IHS Markit, in association with ISM and IFPSM. The composite Global Manufacturing PMI dipped to 53.1 from 53.5 in April. The second-quarter PMI average shows “mild growth deceleration” compared to the first quarter, said J.P. Morgan. The U.S. outperformed […]
Lewis Leibowitz, trade attorney and contributor to Steel Market Update, offers the following update on trade events in Washington: As briefly stated by the Trade Commissioner of the European Union, Cecilia Malmstrom, “Today is a bad day for world trade.” Malmstrom was referring to the announcement by President Trump that the 25 percent tariffs on steel […]