International Steel Prices
April 5, 2020
CRU: Expect a 22 Percent Drop in Steel Sheet Demand
Written by Tim Triplett
CRU is forecasting that North American steel sheet prices will find a bottom sometime this summer, but will remain volatile while supply and demand gradually rebalance as the coronavirus crisis subsides.
CRU projects steel consumption will decline by 22 percent this year as a result of virus-related shutdowns in automotive and other key manufacturing industries. Adding to the weak steel demand is the low price of oil, which has put the brakes on drilling activity in North America’s energy sector and on orders of oil country tubular goods. In response, various mills have idled furnaces and curtailed operations in an attempt to quickly cut steel output.
