We thought it would be a good idea to share the agenda of a typical Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshop so you can get a feel for what we cover. Our instructors each have decades of steel experience as metallurgists, purchasing experts, sales, marketing and market intelligence. Our next workshop […]
Nucor Corporation announced today that Chief Digital Officer and Executive Vice President R. Joseph Stratman plans to retire on June 8 after more than 29 years of service with Nucor. Stratman began his career with Nucor in 1989 as Controller of Nucor Building Systems-Indiana. He then served as Controller of Nucor-Yamato Steel Company, General Manager […]
Nucor Corporation announced today that Chief Digital Officer and Executive Vice President, R. Joseph Stratman, plans to retire on June 8, 2019 after more than 29 years of service with Nucor. Mr. Stratman began his career with Nucor in 1989 as Controller of Nucor Building Systems-Indiana. He then served as Controller of Nucor-Yamato Steel Company, […]
The Russians are coming—to Kentucky. Russian aluminum producer United Co. Rusal plans to invest $200 million in a $1.7 billion rolling mill being built by start-up company Braidy Industries in Ashland, Ky. The investment will give Rusal a 40 percent stake in the project and a significant presence in the U.S. automotive and aerospace aluminum […]
Flat rolled steel inventories at the service centers rose at the end of March, according to the data providers working with Steel Market Update. SMU has been collecting service center data for almost two years now. Six months back, with the help of the CRU team, we changed the way we were collecting and the […]
The steel industry is on the brink of a capacity boom as mills reinvest their record profits in dozens of mill additions and upgrades. What will that mean for steel supply and prices in the coming years? Who better to answer that question than the chief executives from four of North America’s leading steel producers—JSW […]
The steel industry is on the brink of a capacity boom as mills reinvest their record profits in dozens of mill additions and upgrades. What will that mean for steel supply and prices in the coming years? Who better to answer that question than the chief executives from four of North America’s leading steel producers—JSW […]
SMU was speaking to a coated sheet steel buyer this afternoon about flat rolled steel prices. He made an interesting observation about how the markets have become quite complicated. When looking at galvanized, for example, there are different starting points for light gauge, medium gauge and heavy gauge steels. There are also regional differences (southern […]
SMU was speaking to a coated sheet steel buyer this afternoon about flat rolled steel prices. He made an interesting observation about how the markets have become quite complicated. When looking at galvanized, for example, there are different starting points for light gauge, medium gauge and heavy gauge steels. There are also regional differences (southern […]
The U.S. Department of Commerce released updated import license data on Tuesday evening, with new March license estimates up slightly to 2.76 million tons. These latest figures would be above the three-month moving average (3MMA, through final January data), but below the 12-month moving average (12MMA). When removing the semi-finished (mostly slabs) licenses from the […]
Sales of HVAC products remain fairly strong in most parts of the country, but prices don’t fully reflect that demand, reported members of the Heating, Air-conditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International in their monthly conference call. “I still think the market is fragile,” commented one HARDI member. “The mills have a lot of fundamentals in their […]
The U.S. Department of Commerce released license data for foreign steel coming into the United States. Based on the data received and reported through April 2, March imports are expected to come in slightly higher than February at 2.6-2.7 million net tons. When removing the semi-finished (mostly slabs) licenses from the data, the finished steel […]
Year over year, total rolled product imports in March were down by 11.2 percent, measured as a three-month moving average (3MMA). This early look at March’s import volume is based on Commerce Department license data (see explanation below). Beginning in January 2018, we expanded this import analysis to include all major steel sectors: sheet, plate, […]
I’m going to give you more than advertisements in tonight’s Final Thoughts. I have been struggling with our SMU Price Momentum Indicator. It appears that each product has a life of its own, and I need to do a deeper analysis of each to determine where my Momentum Indicator needs to be. Right now, I […]
The Canadian International Trade Tribunal recommended on Wednesday that five of seven provisional steel safeguards, imposed by the government following the imposition of Section 232 tariffs by the U.S., be removed. A CITT inquiry concerning the importation into Canada of heavy plate, concrete reinforcing bar, energy tubular products, hot-rolled sheet, pre-painted steel, stainless steel wire, […]
Many e-commerce ventures have targeted the metals industry over the years with varying degrees of success, but one of the latest on the scene has ambitious plans to reinvent industrial business—thus its name, Reibus. Founded 10 months ago with offices in Atlanta, Reibus.com is an online business-to-business marketplace that allows buyers and sellers of steel, […]
Producer Price Index data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows steel losing ground to rival materials. Steel continues to become less competitive against aluminum, although the rate of change is slowing. In the case of plastic pipe compared to carbon steel pipe, steel is becoming dangerously uncompetitive. Prefabricated metal buildings are still challenged by […]
The spot price of West Texas Intermediate FOB Cushing, Okla., had a recent peak on Oct. 3 of $76.40/barrel. The price declined to $44.48 on Dec. 27, but recovered to $59.09 on March 15. The total number of operating rigs exploring for oil has declined by 61 since Jan. 4. The prices of oil and […]
I am going to be in the office for the next couple of weeks. My next trip is not until the 15th of April. We have quite a bit going on with a new flat rolled and plate steel market trends analysis (survey) starting first thing Monday morning. If you receive an invitation, please take […]
Nucor has announced that it will build a new steel plate mill in Brandenburg, Ky. The $1.35 billion mill will be capable of producing 1.2 million tons of steel plate products per year. The mill is scheduled to be operational in 2022, pending permit and regulatory approvals. The plant will have the ability to produce 97 […]
By CRU Principal Analyst Josh Spoores In the U.S., plate prices rose $16 /s.ton after falling by $34 /s.ton last week. Prices here started to fall back from their high levels in February, though mills announced a $40 s/.ton price increase, which at best may only stabilize prices at this lower level unless seasonal demand […]
Nucor has announced that it will build a new steel plate mill in Brandenburg, Ky. The $1.35 billion mill will be capable of producing 1.2 million tons of steel plate products per year. The mill is scheduled to be operational in 2022, pending permit and regulatory approvals. The plant will have the ability to produce 97 […]
Over the next two years, Big River Steel will expand its Osceola, Ark., flex mill with help again from German plant builder SMS Group. Big River has commissioned SMS to supply mechanical equipment, electrical and automation systems and digitalization. BRS will add a second electric arc furnace and twin-ladle furnace to the complex, increasing output […]
I want to make sure that all of you thinking of attending this year’s SMU Steel Summit Conference are aware of some of changes, so you can plan your schedules accordingly. First, the CME Group will be hosting a Price Risk Management Workshop in the Atlanta Airport Marriott Gateway Hotel (next to GICC) from 10:30 […]
Mexico has renewed the 15 percent tariff on imports of iron and steel products from countries with which it does not have a free-trade agreement. The tariffs cover 186 products and were originally introduced in 2015 to protect domestic producers from Asian imports. The newest renewal cites the “crisis facing the international steel market caused […]
The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC) futures market was written by David Feldstein. As the Flack Global Metals Chief Market Risk Officer, 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 […]
Each month, Steel Market Update produces an import analysis by region for two of the six flat rolled product groups (HRC, CRC, HDG, OMC, CTL plate and coiled plate). This month we are focusing on plate products. The intent of these regional updates is to bridge the gap between our monthly license data summaries and […]
This report examines the import share of sheet, plate, long and tubular products and 16 subcategories through December. Table 1 shows total supply to the market in three months through December and in 12 months through December for the four product groups and the 16 subcategories. Supply to the market is the total of domestic […]
Steel Dynamics’ earnings guidance for first-quarter 2019 was lower than analysts expected. SDI anticipates a decrease from the prior quarter as a result of lower earnings from its sheet operations. Expected earnings of $0.88 to $0.92 per diluted share will also be impacted by planned maintenance outages during the quarter. Although sheet earnings fell in […]
Are steel prices witnessing a dead cat bounce or the beginning of a bullish reversal? The market appears split on the feline vs. bovine analogy. In other words, there is a huge divergence of thought on what is going to happen to steel prices over the next three or four months. The benchmark price of […]