General Motors has extended chip-related outages to assembly plants that make its highly sought-after pickup trucks. The Detroit-based automaker, the largest in the U.S., had previously tried to shield truck plants from the impacts of the semiconductor shortage. Here is the latest: • General Motor’s assembly plant in Flint, Mich., will operate on one production […]
Steel Market Update’s poll of service center and manufacturing executives this week shows a general consensus that steel prices still have a ways to go before they roll over and begin to correct. When that might happen is anyone’s guess. There are nascent indications that the tight steel supplies may be loosening a bit, however. […]
Steel Market Update’s poll of service center and manufacturing executives this week shows a general consensus that steel prices still have a ways to go before they roll over and begin to correct. When that might happen is anyone’s guess. There are nascent indications that the tight steel supplies may be loosening a bit, however. […]
Record steel prices = record profits for steel mills. And so it was record second-quarter profits all around, with even better expected in the third quarter. We’re not going to guess whether spot prices will continue upward for the balance of Q3. But contract prices, which lag spot prices, will. And that alone should be […]
Record steel prices = record profits for steel mills. And so it was record second-quarter profits all around, with even better expected in the third quarter. We’re not going to guess whether spot prices will continue upward for the balance of Q3. But contract prices, which lag spot prices, will. And that alone should be […]
This evening we published our SMU Mill Lead Times by Product analysis. I recently received a few questions on the subject: How do we gather our lead time data? Do we take into consideration the lead times being published by the individual domestic steel mills? How do we feel the information we report is indicative […]
Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co.’s sales soared to a record of $3.42 billion in the second quarter on shipments of 1.424 million tons. Sales were up 20.4% from the previous quarter and up 69.3% from the same period last year. The record-setting results for the largest service center in North America were due primarily to the […]
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. reported the best quarterly results in the company’s history with net income of $795 million on revenues of $5.0 billion in the second quarter. That’s a huge turnaround from the pandemic-plagued quarter last year when the company lost $108 million on revenues of just $1.1 billion. “In the second quarter of 2021, we […]
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) is still in growth mode and actively looking at M&A options But don’t expect another new mill on the scale of the electric-arc furnace (EAF) flat-rolled mill being built in Sinton, Texas, company executives said. The $1.9 billion Sinton mill, which will have annual capacity of three million tons per year, […]
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) doesn’t see a big steel price correction in the cards because of broader – and largely unrecognized – structural shifts underway in the U.S. steel market, company executives said. Industry experts have been focused on potential negatives such as new capacity, increased imports and the removal of trade barriers. They are missing […]
Nucor has agreed to buy racking and hollow structural section (HSS) manufacturer Hannibal Industries Inc. for $370 million. “Acquiring Hannibal Industries gives us a new growth platform and broadens our offering to the fast-growing warehouse channel,” Nucor President and CEO Leon Topalian said. “This acquisition reflects our strategy of expanding beyond our core steel businesses and establishes […]
Lobbying groups for steel consumers blasted a federal appeals court’s decision to uphold former President Donald Trump’s abrupt doubling of Section 232 tariffs on Turkey to 50%. The tariffs have already led to high prices, long lead times and shortages that have hurt downstream manufacturers, and the decision regarding Turkey could set a dangerous precedent by […]
General Motors and Stellantis have extended downtime at some of their North American plants into August because of the ongoing chip shortage. The latest development means all Detroit-area “Big Three” automakers will be grappling with shortages of semiconductors and other parts into next month. Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford – the crosstown rival of GM and Stellantis […]
General Motors and Stellantis have extended downtime at some of their North American plants into August because of the ongoing chip shortage. The latest development means all Detroit-area “Big Three” automakers will be grappling with shortages of semiconductors and other parts into next month. Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford – the crosstown rival of GM and Stellantis […]
Evraz North America has broken ground on a new $500 million rail mill at its steelmaking complex in Pueblo, Colo. The expansion – expected to result in the most modern rail mill in North America – is slated to be completed in 2023, the company said. It will allow Evraz to make 300-foot rail segments that […]
Steel Market Update reported our service center inventories and shipment data to our data providers today. Our Premium level members will get the report at 1 p.m. ET tomorrow. I can whet your appetite by telling you that flat rolled inventories on a days of supply basis rose slightly, but are not yet at what […]
“It’s an absolute certainty we will have a stronger M&A market in the next couple years. There are a lot of businesses looking to buy and a lot of businesses looking to sell. There will be many more announcements of deals in the second half, especially the fourth quarter,” predicted Dan Sullivan, founder of Montrose […]
Producer prices continue to rise into the summer months showing no signs of slowing down. The index and subcategories for final demand have not only recovered from the collapse seen at the onset of COVID-19 but have now surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Since the repeated decreases from February through April of 2020, the composite Producer Price […]
Steel Market Update’s latest analysis of monthly Key Market Indicators highlights that the road to recovery from the COVID-19 doldrums is far from over. Markers for the Present Situation have contracted a bit while Trends show small but positive moves from a month ago. The markers are not necessarily an evaluation of the economy’s journey from affliction to […]
Manufacturing growth in New York State surged to a record high in July, according to the data collected in the Empire State Manufacturing Survey. The general business index jumped 26 points to 43.0. Indicators for new orders, shipments and inventories all increased by double digits from June, rising 16.9 points, 29.6 points, and 18.8 points, respectively. Unfilled orders increased as well, […]
Nucor plans to slash Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions at its steel mills by 35% by 2030. North America’s largest steelmaker also aims in the following years to be “net zero” when it comes to carbon emissions. “Our GHG intensity is less than one-third the world average, but we are committed to […]
So much for the summer doldrums. After a brief pause following Independence Day (and Canada Day), sheet prices have resumed their sharp upward trajectory. Hot-rolled coil prices are now over $1,800 per ton ($90 per cwt) while cold-rolled and galvanized base prices are above $2,000 per ton ($100 per cwt). If this pace of gains […]
U.S. industrial production, manufacturing and durable goods orders continue to show improvement from the coronavirus pandemic downturn, indicating a strengthening manufacturing sector. The health of the manufacturing economy has a direct bearing on the health of the steel industry. Note that some of the historical data below has been adjusted by the U.S. Census Bureau […]
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) aims to be carbon neutral at its electric arc furnace (EAF) steel mills by 2050. The steelmaker has also set interim emissions reductions goals for 2025 and 2030. Namely, it plans to reduce combined Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions at its EAF mills by 20% by 2025 and […]
To those of you in the United States, welcome back from the Fourth of July Holiday. For those of you in Canada, Mexico and elsewhere, thank you for bearing with us as we took our last holiday prior to our conference at the end of August (23-25). Square Peg in a Round Hole? As we move […]
Square Peg in a Round Hole? As we move about speaking to steel buyers, I get the impression they want to live by the rules of the market that have been in place for most of the last 30+ years. Flat rolled and plate steel buyers believe world steel prices will ultimately impact U.S. steel […]
“June saw surging demand drive another sharp rise in manufacturing output, with both new orders and production growing at some of the fastest rates recorded since the survey began in 2007,” said Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit, reporting that the research firm’s U.S. Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) posted a robust 62.1 […]
U.S. steel product shipments rebounded in May, up 3.1% following a 7.1% decrease the month prior. Steel product shipments have been irregular from month to month since bottoming out in May 2020. The seesaw pattern over the past year is attributable to several factors including mill outages, factory curtailments and seasonal disruptions as the marketplace […]
The U.S. labor market accelerated in June, seeing the largest gain in 10 months, reported the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The latest data shows a surge of 850,000 new workers added to payrolls in June after a spring lull. Wages also saw noticeable improvements, both positive signs of growing demand for workers. Following a disappointing jobs […]
The U.S. economy continued to push forward in June, the labor market recovery accelerating after a weaker-than-expected showing in April. Employers added a net 850,000 jobs last month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the most added in one month since last August and outpacing the consensus expectation from market experts. Despite the […]