Biden administration Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo described Section 232 tariffs on imported steel and aluminum as “effective” on Thursday. “The data show that those tariffs have been effective,” Secretary Raimondo said in an interview with MSNBC. Raimondo’s comments are important because trade policies such as Section 232, which Trump rolled out in March 2018, fall […]
Flat-rolled steel imports to the United States rebounded in February, weighing in at their highest monthly total in more than a year. Hot-rolled imports, meanwhile, hit their highest point in more than two years, according to Commerce Department figures. And the trend is only just getting started, according to some market participants. The U.S. was […]
U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) nominee Katherine Tai expressed support for Section 232 tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, characterizing the duties as a “legitimate tool in the trade toolbox.” The prospective top U.S. trade negotiator also signaled that the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) – the replacement to the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) – would […]
There has been much said about the squeeze on supply of flat rolled and not as much about demand. Demand has been quite good in all sectors except the energy sector, which has been struggling for a couple of years due to prices that went below $40 per barrel. Now we are seeing warning signs […]
SMU contributor Tim Stevenson is a partner at Metal Edge Partners, a firm engaged in Risk Management and Strategic Advisory. In this role, he and his firm design and execute risk management strategies for clients along with providing process and analytical support. In Tim’s previous role, he was a Director at Cargill Risk Management, and […]
SMU contributor Bryan Tice is a partner at Metal Edge Partners, a firm engaged in risk management and strategic advisory. In this role, he and the firm design and execute risk management strategies for clients along with providing process and analytical support. Prior to Metal Edge Partners, Bryan held a variety of commercial leadership roles […]
SMU contributor Tim Stevenson is a partner at Metal Edge Partners, a firm engaged in Risk Management and Strategic Advisory. In this role, he and his firm design and execute risk management strategies for clients along with providing process and analytical support. In Tim’s previous role, he was a Director at Cargill Risk Management, and […]
Demand is strong and approaching pre-COVID levels in the first quarter, said Olympic Steel President and COO Andrew Greiff during the service center’s fourth-quarter 2020 earnings call. All three company divisions contributed to earnings for Q4 with specialty metals turning in its third strongest quarter in the company’s history as well as the strongest quarter […]
Import license data for February is not complete, but foreign arrivals of some flat-rolled steel products are already running ahead of January volumes, according to Commerce Department figures. And with lead times at domestic mills running close to or even with import arrival times, that trend might continue, some market participants said. Hot Rolled and […]
The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) remains concerned that General Approved Exclusions (GAEs) to Section 232 tariffs and quotas could lead to a surge in imports, the head of the lobbying group said. “This (GAEs) is not ending the entire Section 232 program by any means. But it has the potential to degrade the […]
Big changes to Section 232 steel tariffs and quotas are unlikely in the short-term because of a backlogged Senate and because of a broader trade policy review, the head of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) said. One obvious hurdle to any big moves on the trade front: President Joe Biden does not have […]
The U.S. Commerce Department has made a preliminary decision to eliminate anti-dumping margins on hot-rolled coil from South Korean steelmaker Hyundai Steel Co. Commerce calculated anti-dumping margins of 0.00% for hot band made by Hyundai, according to the results of an administrative review signed by Christian Marsh, the acting assistant secretary of the Commerce Department’s Enforcement and […]
NLMK USA sales in the fourth quarter of 2020 increased 1% from the third quarter to 370,000 metric tons. Sales plummeted 22% from a year ago due to low capacity utilization at NLMK Pennsylvania attributed to the ongoing strike and a shortage of slabs for duty-free import. Rolling capacity utilization at the U.S. segment was […]
The Coalition of American Metal Manufacturers and Users (CAMMU) wants the Biden administration to terminate Section 232 tariffs and quotas on imported steel and aluminum “at once.” The group–which claims to represent more than 30,000 companies and one million workers in downstream metals-consuming sectors–said doing so will save jobs at home and allow the U.S. […]
Section 232 tariffs and quotas have left domestic steelmakers and steel consumers in sharply different realities. One side is investing big at home and enjoying record profits. The other is angry about sharply higher costs and is scouting for more steel abroad. That was the takeaway from a trade roundtable at Steel Market Update’s virtual Tampa […]
Interest in imported flat-rolled steel is growing among some U.S. buyers thanks to a widening spread between domestic mill prices and foreign offers. Some market participants said they had already purchased material at what they thought was an attractive price–and because long domestic mill lead times reduce the risk of buying imports. But others said […]
Section 232 tariffs on imported steel and aluminum netted the U.S. government nearly $2 billion in its 2020 fiscal year. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) collected $1.3 billion in Section 232 tariffs on imported steel in fiscal 2020 and $500 million in tariffs on imported aluminum, according to a recent report from the agency. […]
A decision from the U.S. Court of International Trade upholding Section 232 tariffs on imported steel means any repeal of the trade action will have to come from the Biden administration with the support of Congress, a top American Metals Supply Chain Institute (AMSCI) executive said. AMSCI should know because it went before the same […]
The Congressional Steel Caucus–in a bi-partisan show of unity–has asked President Joe Biden to keep Section 232 tariffs and quotas in place. The request comes as the Biden administration has acknowledged that a review of trade policies enacted by former President Donald Trump is ongoing. “The review is underway of the previous administration’s trade policy […]
Steel buyers are feeling good about their prospects later this year, as this week’s Steel Market Update Future Sentiment Index saw its highest reading in more than two years at +66, a 13-point jump over the past two weeks. Current Sentiment, which saw a small, four-point bump to +68, is equally optimistic. Every two weeks, […]
Nucor is investing to grow in capability not capacity, said Nucor President and CEO Leon Topalian in remarks Tuesday during the virtual Tampa Steel Conference, co-hosted by Steel Market Update. “It’s not about tons and volume, but about servicing customers’ long-term needs,” he said. One growing customer segment for Nucor is the auto industry. Nucor […]
Nucor is investing to grow in capability not capacity, said Nucor President and CEO Leon Topalian in remarks Tuesday during the virtual Tampa Steel Conference, co-hosted by Steel Market Update. “It’s not about tons and volume, but about servicing customers’ long-term needs,” he said. One growing customer segment for Nucor is the auto industry. Nucor […]
The U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) has upheld the legality of Section 232 tariffs following a legal challenge lodged by consumers of foreign steel. The ruling deals a blow to the plaintiffs–Universal Steel Products, PSK Steel Corp., The Jordan International Company, Dayton Parts LLC and Borusan Mannesmann Pipe U.S. Inc.–which claimed that they had […]
NLMK USA and striking United Steelworkers at the mill’s operations in western Pennsylvania remain at loggerheads nearly five and a half months after the labor action began. “As of now, we remain far apart with the union. We continue to meet in good faith working towards a resolution,” NLMK USA President and CEO Robert D. Miller said […]
The American Metals Supply Chain Institute (AMSCI) wants President Joe Biden to repeal Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum. The group, formerly known as the American Institute for International Steel (AIIS), said doing so was necessary for the health of the metals supply chain and the broader U.S. economy. The request: that the Biden […]
President Joe Biden has revoked a decision–made in the waning days of the Trump administration–to remove Section 232 tariffs from aluminum imported from the UAE. “In my view, the available evidence indicates that imports from the UAE may still displace domestic production, and thereby threaten to impair our national security,” Biden wrote in a presidential […]
“What a difference a quarter can make,” exclaimed U.S. Steel President and CEO David Burritt during the opening of the fourth-quarter 2020 earnings call. The company posted positive net earnings of $49 million following a net loss of $234 million in the third quarter and a net loss of $688 million in Q4 2019. Net […]
NLMK USA has sued U.S. Steel for at least $100 million to recoup Section 232 tariffs it claims were unjustly levied against it because of a “deception” perpetrated by the integrated steelmaker against the Commerce Department. In addition, the U.S. subsidiary of NLMK Group–Russia’s largest steelmaker–seeks a jury trial, additional damages to be determined at […]
It might be comforting to have 2020 in the rear-view mirror, but 2021 could have a few tricks up its sleeves, an ArcelorMittal USA analyst said. The good news: The U.S. should see apparent steel consumption increase 6% in 2021 after it fell 16% in 2020, according to Ping Liang, senior analyst-strategic marketing, at ArcelorMittal […]
Flat-rolled steel prices have room to rise despite being at record levels, and any correction might not come until well into the second quarter. That was the takeaway from a conference call this morning with members of the Heating, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI). “I don’t remember a market like this. Maybe at […]