Ford Motor Company announced today that it is canceling plans to build a new plant in San Luis Potosi, Mexico and will invest in electrical vehicle production in the U.S. About half of the $1.6 billion that was designated for the Mexican plant will be used instead to expand the Flat Rock Assembly Plant in […]
Vehicle sales fell slightly to 17.87 million units on a seasonally adjusted annualized basis in November, though this still beat expectations. The strengthening job market is supporting vehicle sales and will continue to do so through next year as an average of 170,000 jobs are estimated to be added per month. On the other side […]
On Friday this week the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its series of producer price indexes, for more than 10,000 goods and materials. For an explanation of this program see the end of this piece. The latest release this week reported results through September. We run this analysis every three or four months to […]
Vehicles sales in the US are settling in to a more sustainable pace, but a strengthening labor market, low interest rates, low gasoline prices, and rising incentives are still supportive of strong demand. Moody’s Analytics expects the pace of light vehicle sales to be above a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 17 million units […]
Light vehicle (LV) sales bounced back to a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 17.9 million units in July from 16.7 million in June (Figure 1). July was the best month since November last year. Autos rose from 6.8 to 7.1 million and light trucks rose from 9.9 to 10.8 million. The mix in July […]
Is Now the Time to Panic as Steel Mills Control Their Order Books? The flat rolled steel markets continue to march to their own drummer. Lead times are extending, spot flat rolled steel prices are rising and many of the mills are not opening their order books for spot business. There are a number of […]
US vehicle sales in February were the strongest for that month in 15 years with a seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) of 17.5 million units, up from 16.4 million in February last year. Figure 1 shows auto and light truck sales since January 2006. Auto sales have been essentially flat for four full years as […]
US vehicle sales in January exceeded expectations and came in at 17.6 million units on a seasonally adjusted annual rate basis. This was up by 300,000 from December and by 5.4 percent year over year. Light truck sales contributed 10.1 million units and autos 7.4 million. This month we decided to examine the long term […]
Each month the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) puts out its series of producer price indexes, for thousands of goods and materials. For an explanation of this program see the end of this piece. The latest release last week reported results through November. We run this analysis every three or four months to give readers […]
In November, vehicle sales in the US maintained their very high seasonally adjusted annual rate of 18.2 million units for the third consecutive month. All the growth this year has been in light trucks which includes crossovers. Sales in November were 6.2 percent higher than the same month a year ago. Year to date sales […]
In October, vehicle sales had another small gain from September’s post-recession high of almost 18.2 million units at a seasonally adjusted annual rate. This followed the August rate of 17.8 million units. Both at the time were the best pace since July 2005, when incentives caused sales to surge. Sales in October were 10 percent […]
The nation’s highways received some much needed attention last week. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Thursday approved a bipartisan bill to provide up to $325 billion for transportation projects over the next six years. The Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform (STRR) Act of 2015 (H.R.3763) would authorize $261 billion for highways, $55 billion […]
In September, vehicle sales reached a new post-recession high of almost 18.2 million units at a seasonally adjusted annual rate. This followed the August rate of 17.8 million units. Both at the time were the best pace since July 2005, when incentives caused sales to surge. Sales in September were 10 percent higher than the […]
Steel earnings calls began this last week and all of them reference the downturn in the oil industry and its effect on production. Low oil prices, overcapacity, and resulting weak demand for OCTG products continues to force firms to adjust output and workforce. Vallourec Star Steel announced this week that it will begin a third […]
U.S. automotive sale results were released today under the shadow of a failed UAW tentative agreement with Fiat Chrysler. However, auto manufacturers kept their successful sales run going again in September. The Detroit Big Three all enjoyed double digit increases in sales last month. Ford gained 23 percent, General Motors 12 percent, and FCA 14 […]
In August, vehicle sales reached a new recovery high of 17.8 million units on a seasonally adjusted annualized basis. This was the highest pace since July 2005, when incentives caused sales to surge. The August sales figure was particularly driven by light trucks which increased from 9.7 to 10.1 million units annualized. Autos fell from […]
Each month the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) puts out its series of producer price indexes, for thousands of goods and materials. For an explanation of this program see the end of this piece. The latest release last Friday reported results through August. We run this analysis every three or four months to give readers […]
General Motors wants to bring electric cars to the masses not just the “elite.” GM CEO Mary Barra, in an interview with LinkedIn’s executive editor Daniel Roth, said the all-electric Chevy Bolt (with a “B”) will be offered to the public at $30,000 compared to Tesla’s $75,000 vehicle. Electrification is for everyone, “not just the […]
The consumer confidence index as reported by the Conference Board rose one point in May to 95.4 as April was revised downwards by one point. The composite value combines the view of the present situation and expectations. The view of the present situation rose from 105.1 to 108.1 as expectations fell slightly from 87.1 to […]
The consumer confidence index as reported by the Conference Board fell sharply in April as March was revised upwards slightly. In April the composite value which combines the view of the present situation and expectations fell from 101.4 to 95.2. The view of the present situation fell from 109.5 to 106.8 but the big change […]
The Baltic Dry Index hit a thirty-year low on February 23 registering a reading of 512. As of March 11 the index increased to a still dismal 565. The Index tracks shipping rates for dry bulk cargoes like iron ore, coal and grain and is considered a barometer for global steel trade. The MID-SHIP Group […]
Each month the Bureau of Labor Statistics, (BLS) puts out its series of producer price indexes, for thousands of goods and materials. For an explanation of this program see the end of this piece. The latest release last Wednesday reported January results. We run this analysis every three months to give readers an opportunity to […]
I was conversing with a consulting friend who reported to me that steel prices are taking a beating in Europe. He referenced hot rolled prices being offered out of Russia into Europe for 365 to 375 euros. He also reported that the sales of the Italian steel mill, ILVA would not succeed and the mill […]
The ISM Manufacturing Index retreated again in December. The Institute of Supply Management released their December report on January 2nd and after the October surprise on the upside, the index slid back once again from 59.0 to 58.7 in November and to 55.5 in December, however this is still equal to the average for the […]
The good news for the consumer is gasoline prices are closing in on $2.00 per gallon in many areas of the country. The bad news for the steel industry is the drop in oil prices means a slowdown in new drilling, one of the major users of hot rolled coil. The good news for buyers […]
This will be our last issue before Christmas and the last day of Hanukkah. We wish each and everyone one of you and your family all the best over the Holidays. I drove from Atlanta to Chicago over the weekend as we prepare to celebrate the Holidays with our son. One of the first gifts […]
Figure 1 shows historical gas and oil prices since January 2000. The daily spot price of West Texas Intermediate fell below $100 in August and by December 15th was down to $55.96, the latest daily figure available from the Energy Information Administration, (EIA.) Brent closed at $61.09 on the same day. Natural gas delivered to […]
Jawad Mian wrote, “The precipitous decline in the price of oil is perhaps one of the most bearish macro developments this year. We believe we are entering a “new oil normal,” where oil prices stay lower for longer. The reason oil prices started sliding in June can be explained by record growth in US production, […]
Steel Market Update has written a number of articles about the Keystone Pipeline. The pipeline has not been completed due to politics and environmental issues. We received an article from Peter Brebach, CEO of Iron Angels of Colorado which takes a look at the other side of the issue from an economic and environmental perspective: […]
Each month the Bureau of Labor Statistics, (BLS) puts out its series of producer price indexes, for thousands of goods and materials. The latest release on Tuesday reported October results. We run this analysis every three months to give readers an opportunity to become aware of any changes in the competitive position of steel against […]