Attorney and SMU contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on trade developments in Washington: This week saw some important developments. Very few people have the slightest idea where all the talk on national security, intellectual property, NAFTA renegotiation and tariffs is actually going. At this point, the only trade restrictions are on steel and aluminum, […]
Trying to predict the price of a metal is an exercise in futility, but MetalMiner strives to provide metal buying organizations with clarity around when and how much to buy, says Lisa Reisman, MetalMiner Executive Editor. Reisman will make another appearance at Steel Market Update’s 2018 Steel Summit Conference, set for Aug. 27-29 at the […]
Bay State Wind, a 50-50 partnership between offshore wind company Orsted and transmission builder Eversource, will partner with international steel pipe producer EEW to manufacture components for offshore wind projects at a new facility to be built in Massachusetts. EEW will collaborate with U.S.-based Gulf Island Fabrication, a fabricator of offshore and onshore steel structures […]
Ryerson Holding Co., a processor and distributor of industrial metals, said in earnings guidance on Wednesday that tons sold and average selling prices are expected to be higher in the first quarter. Sales revenue is anticipated in the range of $930-$950 million compared to $811 million in the fourth quarter and $815 million in Q1 […]
Global manufacturing growth in March slowed to its lowest level since October 2017. The J.P. Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI posted 53.4, down from 54.1 in February. Rates of expansion fell in the consumer and intermediate goods sectors, while the investment goods PMI rose to its highest level so far this year. Manufacturing growth eased in […]
Manufacturing activity expanded in March, though at a slower rate than February, reports the Institute for Supply Management. ISM’s March PMI registered 59.3 percent, down from 60.8 percent in the February survey of corporate purchasing managers. Any reading above 50 indicates growth. New orders continued to expand in March, although slowing 2.3 percentage points from […]
I am happy to announce CNBC analyst and commentator Ron Insana will be doing our closing keynote speech this year. Mr. Insana is well know for his analysis, business forecasts and work following politics, regulations and trade issues and how they will impact business in the United States. I believe our attendees will have a […]
In response to the Trump administration tariffs, South Korea was the first country to agree to a quota and to restrict the amount of steel they can export out of their country to the United States. Steel Market Update’s analysis below shows the potential for the quotas to have a big impact on specific market […]
The steel import trend for the month of March is now approaching 3.5 million tons. This trend is based on license data through the 26th of March. If the month ultimately comes in above 3.2 million tons, it will top both the 12-month and the 3-month moving averages for steel imports. SMU assumes that a […]
JSW Steel announced it will invest $500 million in its U.S. plate and pipe operations. The Baytown, Texas, facility will receive $150 million in upgrades and the rest will fund a new hot-end facility to make steel. Texas Governor Gregg Abbott signed an agreement with the company to provide a grant of $3.4 million. The […]
Last week, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced that in the last two months of 2017, the U.S. pumped more crude oil than at any time in history. The spot price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) broke through the $60 level on Dec. 29 for the first time since Dec. 18, 2014. It reached $64.22 […]
Below is the latest data released by the the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) regarding residential and commercial heating and cooling equipment shipments through January 2018. You may read the press release on their website here. Residential Storage Water Heaters U.S. shipments of residential gas storage water heaters for January 2018 increased 7.7 percent […]
January foreign steel imports were finalized yesterday at 2,879,076 net tons (2,611,857 metric tons), according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. This is up 17.5 percent from December, and up 4.2 percent from November. It is also slightly greater than import levels seen in January 2017 (2,814,233 tons). Current February license data has imports down […]
Ryerson, a processor and distributor of metals, posted sales of $3.4 billion for 2017, a 17.7 percent increase year over year due to an 11.9 percent increase in the average selling price and a 5.1 percent gain in volume. Net income was $17.1 million for the year. Gross margins decreased to 17.3 percent in 2017 […]
The U.S. rig count, an indicator of oil country tubular goods demand, rose this week, according to March 2 data from oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The number of active U.S. drill rigs rose by 3 to 981 rigs, with oil rigs up 1 to 800 rigs, gas rigs up 2 to 181 rigs, and […]
Preliminary steel import data was updated Tuesday afternoon showing 2.88 million net tons of imports for the month of January, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. This is down from last week’s estimate of 3.08 million tons, but up 17.3 percent over December 2017 data. Preliminary data has been averaging 30,000 to 40,000 tons […]
The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC) futures market 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 […]
U.S. gross domestic product grew in every region of the country in last year’s second and third quarters, according to Bureau of Economic Analysis data. The BEA introduced a new data set for GDP by state and region in 2014 and backdated it to Q1 2005. This week, the data was updated through Q3 2017. […]
The employment picture looks attractive so far for 2018, particularly for construction and manufacturing. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday that the economy created 200,000 new nonfarm jobs in January. The BLS data included revisions for previous years, which we have incorporated into this update. There were increases in the total number […]
The U.S. Department of Commerce released the final accounting for December 2017 imports, which came in at 2,450,286 net tons. For the calendar year, foreign steel imports rose by 15 percent compared to 2016. Total steel imports rose to 37,999,383 net tons. Steel Market Update is providing our readers with a detailed analysis of selected […]
The U.S. rig count, an indicator of oil country tubular goods demand, was down for the week, but is up 23 percent year over year, according to Feb. 2 data from oilfield services company Baker Hughes. The number of active U.S. drill rigs fell by 1 to 946 rigs, with oil rigs up 6 to […]
The JP Morgan Global Manufacturing PMI was only slightly lower in January than December’s near seven-year record. Inching down to 54.4 from 54.5, manufacturing is off to a good start for 2018. The Global PMI is produced monthly by J.P. Morgan and IHS Markit in association with the Institute for Supply Management and the International Federation […]
The steel community was probably disappointed this evening when President Trump failed to mention anything about the Section 232 investigation that has been hanging over the heads of the industry for one year. We will all need to wait to see if the president will do anything on the subject of steel and aluminum imports. […]
The latest HARDI/ITR quarterly forecast expects accelerated residential construction in the U.S. through the first half of the 2018. Construction will slow in the second half as the U.S. enters a “brief and mild macroeconomic recession in 2019.” Steel Market Update is a member of an association connected to the construction industry called HARDI, the […]
Which region of the United States is tops in job creation? The Pacific now has the greatest number of employed people of all 10 regions and in 2017 created the most jobs, according to Steel Market Update’s latest analysis of government employment data. Fourth-quarter employment data by state was released by the Bureau of Labor […]
January imports are trending higher than expected at 2.8 million net tons, similar to what was imported one year ago. This is a bit disappointing to many in the steel industry who were expecting total steel imports to drop as they did in November and December 2017. To get a more complete view, we look […]
Popular economist Alan Beaulieu of ITR Economics will make another appearance as a keynote speaker for Steel Market Update’s premier event, the 2018 Steel Summit Conference, set for Aug. 27-29 at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta. Beaulieu will offer an insightful overview of U.S. economic trends and their implications for the steel industry. […]
The spot price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) broke through the $60 level on Dec. 29 for the first time since Dec. 18, 2014. It reached $64.22 on Jan. 12 before falling back to $63.82 on Jan. 16. The total number of operating rigs exploring for oil and gas increased by 15 in the week […]
Future automotive trends reinforce the role of steel, says Greg Ludkovsky, vice president of global R&D for ArcelorMittal. In the following commentary, Ludkovsky contends that steel offers the optimal balance of strength, performance and mass reduction with the least impact on the environment compared to aluminum and other materials: While sales of battery electric vehicles […]
Popular economist Alan Beaulieu of ITR Economics will make another appearance as a keynote speaker for Steel Market Update’s premier event, the 2018 Steel Summit Conference, set for Aug. 27-29 at the Georgia International Convention Center in Atlanta. Beaulieu will offer an insightful overview of U.S. economic trends and their implications for those associated with […]