Flat rolled lead times remain flat compared to what we reported for early July, as well as one month ago. Twice per month, Steel Market Update conducts an analysis of the flat rolled sheet and plate markets. This is done through the use of a comprehensive questionnaire focused on manufacturing companies and service centers, which […]
China’s economic performance through the second quarter continued to be impressive. Chinese growth of steel production lagged the rest of the world in the first months of 2017, but the June output could indicate an unwelcome change. Once each quarter, we publish the official statistics for Chinese GDP, industrial production, consumer price inflation and fixed […]
We’re in for a good year ahead, says popular economist Alan Beaulieu of ITR Economics, who will be a keynote speaker during Steel Market Update’s 2017 Steel Summit Aug. 28-30 at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta. Previewing his remarks, ITR forecasts another six months of accelerating economic expansion for the U.S., followed by […]
Like the rest of the steel market, wholesalers of galvanized steel and other products used in HVAC applications are stuck in an uncomfortable wait-and-see mode as the Section 232 drama plays out in Washington. In the monthly steel conference call hosted today by the Heating, Air-conditioning, and Refrigeration Distributors International, HARDI members reported anxiety over […]
We’re in for a good year ahead, says popular economist Alan Beaulieu of ITR Economics, who will be a keynote speaker during Steel Market Update’s 2017 Steel Summit Aug. 28-30 at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta. Previewing his remarks, ITR forecasts another six months of accelerating economic expansion for the U.S., followed by […]
President Trump kicked off “Made in America Week” on Monday with a display of items from 50 states that were made in the U.S.A. The photo-op event immediately garnered criticism of the Trump family businesses that rely heavily on China and other Asian countries to manufacture their goods. The NAFTA renegotiation objectives were released concurrently […]
The Empire State Manufacturing Index fell 10 points to 9.8 in July, after hitting a two-year high in June. New orders and shipments continued to grow but at a slower pace in New York State, dropping 4.8 points and 11.8 points, respectively. Delivery times were reported as longer in the July survey and inventory levels […]
The very first Steel Market Update Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshop did not include a mill tour. It was held in Houston and, even though the class was interesting and educational, a few of the attendees told us how much better it would have been if they could have toured […]
The very first Steel Market Update Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshop did not include a mill tour. It was held in Houston and, even though the class was interesting and educational, a few of the attendees told us how much better it would have been if they could have toured […]
The controversial Section 232 tariffs/quota expected to be proposed by the Trump administration against foreign steel imports elicited many strong opinions from respondents to SMU’s July 5 flat rolled steel market trends survey. Only 22 percent said they feel duties of 20 percent or more on foreign sources of supply would be good for their […]
A group of the nation’s most distinguished economists and former presidential economic advisors, including Ben Bernanke and Alan Greenspan, has sent President Trump a letter urging him not to pursue further tariffs on steel imports under Section 232. As the July 12 letter notes, the United States already has over 150 countervailing and antidumping duties […]
The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC) futures markets was written by David Feldstein. As the Flack Global Metals director of risk management, Dave is an active participant in the hot rolled futures market, and we believe he provides insightful commentary and trading ideas to our readers. Besides writing futures articles for Steel […]
Autoworkers in the U.S. and Canada say any renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement must lead to higher wages for all three countries, reverse trade deficits with Mexico, and create new manufacturing jobs in the U.S. and Canada. In a joint statement, the United Autoworkers and Canadian association UNIFOR noted that the trade […]
John Packard, Publisher, Steel Market Update Today I spent a good portion of my time wandering around the United States and Canada soliciting information about flat rolled steel pricing, lead times, Section 232 and anything else steel buyers wanted to talk about. I thought the quote of the day was from a manufacturing company who […]
John Packard, Publisher, Steel Market Update Today I spent a good portion of my time wandering around the United States and Canada soliciting information about flat rolled steel pricing, lead times, Section 232 and anything else steel buyers wanted to talk about. I thought the quote of the day was from a manufacturing company who […]
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed here are those of trade attorney Lewis Leibowitz and do not necessarily reflect those of Steel Market Update. There will be more discussion about trade, trade suits and Section 232 in our upcoming SMU Steel Summit Conference, which will include presentations by Leibowitz and others on both sides of the […]
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed here are those of trade attorney Lewis Leibowitz and do not necessarily reflect those of Steel Market Update. There will be more discussion about trade, trade suits and Section 232 in our upcoming SMU Steel Summit Conference, which will include presentations by Leibowitz and others on both sides of the […]
On Monday, our registrations for the Aug. 28-30 SMU Steel Summit Conference surpassed 500 steel and manufacturing executives. We expect to beat last year’s attendance record by 100 attendees as the SMU Steel Summit Conference continues to be the fastest growing steel conference in North America. There are now 46 days to go… We also […]
Earlier today, I got a request from one of our readers looking for articles about Section 232 as they wanted to do an article on the subject for their customers. In responding to their inquiry, I performed two searches using the search box in the top righthand corner of our website. (I usually log in to […]
Flat roll lead times have remained within a narrow range over the past six months, according to the manufacturing companies and steel service centers responding to our flat rolled market trends analysis last week. Hot rolled lead times now average 4.41 weeks, which is the same as what we reported in mid-June, but still one-half […]
We saw steel mill lead times as being essentially the same to slightly higher than what we measured at the time of the last price increase announcements (week of June 5th). When the announcements were made, most steel mills were actively trying to collect increases. We saw the bottom of our price range rise, and […]
The U.S. employment situation continues to be good. Net job creation in June, including revisions for April and May, was 269,000, and the latest number of job openings was the highest on record. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) net job creation report released on Friday exceeded economists’ expectations and was another example of why […]
The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC) steel and financial futures markets was written by Jack Marshall of Crunch Risk LLC. Here is how Jack saw trading over the past week: Steel If you compare prices between last week and this week, you will see the HR futures market has found support and […]
The Manufacturing ISM Report on Business exceeded expectations in June with a PMI reading of 57.8 percent. The composite index jumped 2.9 points for its strongest reading since August 2014, said the Institute for Supply Management, Tempe, Ariz. A reading above 50 indicates growth. The new orders index strengthened with a 4 point increase to […]
Manufacturing growth remained steady in June, according to the JP Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI. The composite index was unchanged from May at 52.6. The PMI average for second quarter fell slightly below first quarter. The Eurozone drove growth in June, accelerating the PMI for the region to its highest level in more than six years. […]
Stelco has been officially acquired by Bedrock Industries as of June 30. The former U.S. Steel Canada entered protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act in September 2014 and will now stand on its own as Stelco Inc. “This is an exciting day for Stelco and for all of those who have worked so hard […]
The “will they or won’t they” drama around Section 232 and whether the Trump administration will place tariffs on steel imports is reaching a peak. The Department of Commerce is expected to announce its findings on the Section 232 investigation by the end of next week. According to CNBC, a draft of the report has been circulated […]
An explanation of the Key Market Indicators concept is given at the end of this piece for those readers who are unfamiliar with it. This will explain the difference between our view of the present situation, which is subjective, and our analysis of trends, which is based on the latest facts available. In the June […]
Holiday Schedule for Steel Market Update: We will produce a short version of our newsletter on Sunday evening, July 2. We will not produce a newsletter on Tuesday, July 4, and our offices will be closed on both Monday and Tuesday of next week in observance of the Fourth of July Holiday in the USA and […]
Steel Market Update (SMU) Publisher John Packard and Executive Editor Tim Triplett were in New York City over the past two days meeting with manufacturing companies, service centers, steel mills, trading companies and members of the financial community associated with the steel industry. We found the first words off of everyone’s lips were “what do you think […]