Threats of Dumping Suits & USW Negotiations

There are going to be two main themes which SMU and other steel periodicals will be writing about over the coming months (between now and our Steel Summit Conference at the beginning of September). The two themes are: anti-dumping suits on light flat rolled products and union contract negotiations between U.S. Steel and ArcelorMittal USA (as well as Cliffs Natural Resources whose contract expires after the USS and AM contracts). Both of these issues should be at the forefront of every executives desk as they look at making steel purchasing, inventory and selling decisions. Of course, we encourage everyone to stay tuned to Steel Market Update as we will report on these important issues as we get closer to deadlines or when we see changes on the horizon.

The rumor mill continues to spew out information with no backup documentation regarding potential dumping suits on cold rolled and coated products. Every mill talks about “unfair trade” in just about every public forum and customers are hearing from their mill salespeople that suits are likely soon. The comment we hear consistently regarding the filing of trade suits is, “It is not about if, but rather when suits will be filed.”