Tag: prices

A recap of SMU's Oct. 4, 2023, Community Chat featuring AGC chief economist Ken Simonson and his outlook for the construction markets.

On Monday and Tuesday of this week, SMU polled steel buyers on a variety of subjects, including steel prices, demand, inventories, imports, the UAW strike, and what people were talking about in the market.

Did the price increase announced by Cleveland-Cliffs last week stick? Yes, at least partially.

Sheet prices rose this week on the heels of a price increase announced by Cleveland-Cliffs last week that was quietly followed by other mills.

US manufacturing activity improved in September, nearing a recovery, but remained in contraction territory, according to the Institute for Supply Management (ISM).

Steel prices continued to decline last month – a trend we’ve seen repeated since mid-April.

Will the sheet price hike announced by Cleveland-Cliffs (and quietly followed by at least some mills) stick?

US plate prices have been relatively flat this year, especially when compared to sheet products. Case in point; SMU's plate prices stands at $1,455 per ton ($72.75 per cwt) on average, down 7% from a $1,560 per ton peak in April. Our HRC price is at $645 per ton, down 44% from an April peak of $1,160 per ton.

Algoma Steel Inc. plans to ramp up production at its modernized plate mill toward the end of the year. Operations Update The Canadian sheet and plate producer said it in the meantime continues hot commissioning at the upgraded facility and has begun cold commissioning as well. The company said it has also run trials through […]

The US scrap market for October is a bit unsettled as the UAW strike against the Big Three automotive companies has expanded and shows scant signs of an imminent settlement.

The LME aluminum 3-month price was up 4.7% during the last week of the month to close September trading at $2,325 per metric ton – its highest price since early August. Several correlations appeared to have broken down in the short term given the weakness in the US stock market, a weaker copper price, and, critically, the resurgent dollar.

SMU's weekly survey reflects what people in the market are talking about. Lately, a popular topic has been the United Auto Workers (UAW) strike.

Nucor Corp. will keep plate prices unchanged with the opening of its November order book.

I didn’t see the Cleveland-Cliffs price increase coming on Wednesday. And I didn’t expect to see a target base price of $750 per ton ($37.50 per cwt) for hot-rolled coil. But I’ve since heard that other mills, even if they hadn’t publicly announced anything, had been quietly raising prices before Cliffs publicized its increase. Are […]

On Sept. 15, the UAW went on strike at three plants, one of each of the Big 3. On Sept. 22, the UAW expanded its strike to 38 more GM and Stellantis plants. Since Sept. 15, the HRC futures curve has rallied $60-75 in the November – February futures months. The reason why there has been this breakneck rally is because, uh, well, um. I have no idea. I am as shocked by it as perhaps you are, frankly.

US hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices were down again vs. offshore hot band this week. Domestic HRC lost more ground relative to imported product with US tags sinking at a faster rate than those overseas.

Worthington Industries Inc. on Wednesday reported net income of $96.1 million in its fiscal 2024 first quarter, up 49.9% from a year earlier despite net sales falling 15.3% over the same period. The Columbus, Ohio-based service center and manufacturer said the drop resulted mostly from lower average prices in its steel processing division as well as lower overall sales volumes.

Cleveland-Cliffs is increasing its sheet tags, setting a new base price for hot-rolled coil, effective immediately, the company said in a press release on Wednesday, Sept. 27.

Sheet prices declined less than usual this week. Does that mean we’re nearing a bottom, or is it just a pause before the market moves lower yet again?

Last week, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers gave a major speech challenging the views of anti-trade leaders, such as (but not limited to) Bob Lighthizer.

Demand will be the determining factor in what happens to steel sheet prices globally for the remainder of the year, and most risks right now are to the downside. An autoworkers strike has started in the USA and could increase price volatility in the domestic sheet market. The longer and more severe this strike is, […]