Domestic hot-rolled coil (HRC) continues to hold a sizeable price advantage over imports, according to Steel Market Update’s latest analysis on foreign and domestic prices. US HRC is approximately 5–12% cheaper than foreign prices this week, after consideration of freight costs, trader margins and any applicable tariffs. This is the fifth consecutive week that US […]
More North American steel producers are joining in the attempt to increase prices for steel sheet products. NLMK USA said in a Dec. 1 letter to customers that “due to increased order placement and extending lead times,” its base prices will increase by a minimum of $60 per ton ($3 per cwt) for spot orders. […]
Nucor Corp. has joined other sheet producers in the US and Canada in a push to raise base prices by at least $60 per ton ($3 per cwt). The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said the move was effective immediately for new orders in a letter to customers on Wednesday, Nov. 30. “We reserve the right to […]
Stelco Holdings Inc. intends to increase spot prices for carbon steel sheet by at least CAD $80 per ton (USD $60 per ton or $4 per cwt). The move is effective immediately, the company said in a letter to customers on Tuesday, Nov. 29, and applies equally to all new orders of hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and […]
Is the market at a bottom or not? Cleveland-Cliffs and US Steel have each announced price hikes of $60 per ton ($3 per cwt). And we’re told other mills might follow. If this isn’t a bottom, it sure looks like domestic mills are trying to create one with a floor of ~$600 per ton for […]
The bottom end of SMU’s sheet price ranges firmed up this week following price hikes of $60 per ton ($3 per cwt) announced by Cleveland-Cliffs and US Steel on Monday. It’s not clear yet whether the price increases will stick in full, in part, or simply stop the bleeding. Case in point: Our sheet price […]
US Steel Corp. will keep the No. 3 blast furnace at its Mon Valley Works near Pittsburgh idled until market dynamics improve, a company spokeswoman confirmed to SMU. The blast furnace was originally taken offline on Aug. 30 for a month-long planned maintenance outage. The shotcrete (sprayed concrete) reline was completed on Saturday, Sept. 24. […]
US Steel Corp. aims to increase spot prices for carbon steel sheet by at least $60 per ton ($3 per cwt). The move is effective immediately, the company said in a press release on Monday, Nov. 28, and applies equally to all new orders of hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and coated steel products in North America. This […]
A new international initiative aimed at setting a global standard for green steel has been launched and is being led by major players in the US steel industry. The founding members of the new Global Steel Climate Council (GSCC) include Nucor Corp., Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI), Commercial Metals Co. (CMC), Spain’s Celsa Group, the Steel […]
Demand for low-carbon steel is picking up, with two US steel producers bagging significant contracts to provide green steel for a global HVAC producer. Sustainable HVAC provider Trane Technologies announced it will be purchasing low-carbon steel from Nucor Corp., its primary supplier, as well as from US Steel. Nucor’s Econiq™ steel and US Steel’s verdeX® […]
The BMW Group is taking another step in its initiative to achieve its decarbonization goal. The German automaker announced CO2-reduced steel supply agreements with Steel Dynamics Inc. and US Steel’s Big River Steel on Nov. 15. “Steel is one of the main sources of CO2 emissions in our supply chain. That is why we are comprehensively […]
Is this the week that prices bottomed, or do we still have room to fall? If you think ~$600 per ton ($30 cwt) is the bottom, you might point to some positive big-picture developments: strong energy prices, moves by China to prop up its property sector, or the weakening of the US dollar. You might […]
I wish I could offer you some hope about steel prices getting better. But at the moment, the thing that strikes me most is that $600 per ton ($30 per cwt) for hot-rolled coil (HRC) sure looks like the “new” $600 per ton. That’s a joke of course. I make it in remembrance of all that […]
The flat rolled steel market can be a challenging environment to manage risk. Much like a boxer, you must engage in various strategies to protect yourself. When the hits start coming, fancy footwork may not be enough. Steel Market Update (SMU) caught up with David Feldstein, owner of Rock Trading Advisors, and got some insight […]
Steel prices continue to slide, and apparently so does sentiment. Based on SMU’s latest check of the market, sheet prices once again fell across the board, grinding lower and nearing levels some never expected to see again. Speculation that hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices will be at or near the $600-per-ton mark takes center stage with […]
Equipment from the 2023 “complete” closure of a carbon steel, tin, and sheet material cold-rolling mill in Pittsburg, Calif., is up for sale. It is believed to be the assets of the USS-UPI finishing plant owned by US Steel. The mill equipment — including a pickle line tandem cold reduction mill, a No. 1 continuous […]
US apparent steel supply eased further in September, down 8% from August to 8.29 million net tons, according to data from the US Department of Commerce and the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). As the lowest monthly figure since February 2021, this was a 19-month low. September supply was 10% below the average monthly rate […]
The news of the day, outside of politics (I hear we have an election), is that US Steel and the United Steelworkers (USW) finally struck a deal. That’s good news if you were hoping to take an unknown factor out of the market. It’s bad news if you were hoping for higher prices on a […]
US steel export volumes shrunk 10% from August to September, according to the latest US Commerce Department data. 723,000 net tons of steel products exited the country during the month, now the fourth-lowest monthly export rate over the past year and a half. Recall that exports levels in August were at the third-highest monthly rate […]
The US Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) is updating import duties on hot-rolled steel flat products from Turkey and South Korea. The agency just released preliminary results in reviews of the countervailing duties on Turkish product and antidumping duties on South Korean product, according to Federal Register filings. In the initial results of […]
The United Steelworkers (USW) union and US Steel said on Tuesday that they had reached a tentative four-year labor agreement. The USW also said that its bargaining committee had unanimously recommended that union members ratify the deal with the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker. The tentative pact covers approximately 11,000 union-represented workers at US Steel. It does not […]
Nucor on Thursday confirmed its plate prices would remain unchanged with the opening of its December order book. Though the market was anxiously awaiting the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker’s announcement, few were surprised by it. Why? It’s not clear that a price decrease at this stage in the fourth quarter would generate buying. And it would devalue […]
Steel prices really took a dive this week. I’ve noted before that some of that could be explained by seasonal factors. And it doesn’t help that inflation and rising interest rates are hurting consumer demand. But it’s also important to keep an eye on what was said during recent earnings calls. Because I think some […]
Editor’s note: SMU Contributor Michael D’Angelo is a researcher and trader at Marex. In his role, Mike performs fundamental and quantitative analysis, which directly leads to actionable trading/risk management strategies across the base, precious, and ferrous metals derivative spaces. Prior to joining Marex, Mike received a BA in economics with a minor in finance from Princeton […]
Editor’s note: SMU Contributor Michael D’Angelo is a researcher and trader at Marex. In his role, Mike performs fundamental and quantitative analysis, which directly leads to actionable trading/risk management strategies across the base, precious, and ferrous metals derivative spaces. Prior to joining Marex, Mike received a BA in economics with a minor in finance from Princeton […]
Marubeni-Itochu Steel America Inc. (MISA) has acquired Worthington Specialty Processing (WSP), a joint venture between Worthington Industries and United States Steel Corp. The New York-based value-added steel and aluminum processor and North American subsidiary of Japan’s Marubeni-Itochu Steel Inc. acquired WSP’s only remaining facility in Jackson, Mich. in an all-cash deal for an undisclosed sum. […]
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) appears poised to announce that its new aluminum flat-rolled mill will be located in Mississippi, according to state records and recent comments by the state’s governor. Governor Tate Reeves said he would convene a special session of the state legislature on Wednesday, Nov. 2, to finalize “the largest economic development deal […]
Arkansas has become a hub for steel production in the southern US, and it will soon be home to another steel mill. Hybar, a newly formed company led by steel industry veteran David Stickler, announced it will build a $500 million greenfield minimill to produce rebar in northeast Arkansas just outside of Osceola. The new […]
SMU has released its latest full survey results, and I want to highlight some big changes that we’ve seen in the data compared to just two weeks ago. Chief among them is what appears to be a big shift in service center pricing and buying patterns. We had seen most service centers trying to hold […]
US Steel does not currently have any plans to bring back recently idled blast furnaces as it awaits an improvement in market conditions. The Pittsburgh-based steelmaker in September indefinitely idled the No. 3 Edgar Thomson blast furnace at its Mon Valley Works in western Pennsylvania and also the No. 8 BF at its Gary Works […]