The Dodge Momentum Index rose for the second month in a row, gaining 2.4 percent in January to register 126.4 from a revised December reading of 123.4. The Momentum Index, published by Dodge Data & Analytics, is a measure of the initial report for nonresidential building projects in planning. The January increase was the result […]
Alliance Steel LLC announced it has acquired the working capital assets and customer list of Standard Steel & Wire Inc. (SS&W) based in Chicago, IL. Alliance Steel will concurrently form the Specialty Steel Division of Alliance Steel which will be headed by Dennis Barista, formerly of SS&W. Alliance Steel’s Specialty Steel Division will provide all […]
Mill Steel Co., one of the nation’s largest distributors of flat-rolled carbon steel, has acquired certain assets of S&S Steel Services, Inc. (S&S), an Indianapolis/Anderson based supplier of carbon flat-rolled steel service. Terms of the deal, which closed on January 11, 2016, were not disclosed. S&S Steel services manufacturing customers in the Midwest, Mid-South and […]
Contract negotiations continue at ArcelorMittal without any progress reported. In the latest update to union members, the USW said it had made proposals in late January to the company that would “save the company millions of dollars in liability and legacy costs over the course of the contract.” The USW says it has addressed the […]
After five years of negotiations, the twelve nations of the Trans Pacific Partnership signed the trade agreement in a ceremony in New Zealand on February 4. The signing was celebrated by the trade ministers but the agreement must still be officially approved by the individual nations. The countries have two years to ratify TPP through […]
Washington, D.C. – The Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA) Board of Directors today announced that Tracy Porter, Senior Vice President of Commercial Metals Company (CMC) and President of CMC Americas, was elected as Chairman of SMA’s Board of Directors for 2016-2017. In July 2010, Mr. Porter was appointed Senior Vice President of CMC and President of […]
Factory orders continued to slide downwards in December, decreasing $13.5 billion or 2.9 percent to $456.5 billion according to data released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Orders have been down four of the last five months and follow a decrease of 0.7 percent in November. Orders for transportation equipment, in particular commercial aircraft, led the […]
Contract negotiations are continuing at Cliffs Natural Resources but still moving slowing according to an update to members by the USW. Negotiators returned to the bargaining table last week and said progress had been made on health care issues for active and retired workers. The negotiating teams will take a short break and return to […]
US Steel Canada is officially for sale again. A press release by USSC announced the company is commencing a sale and investment solicitation process under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA). US Steel Canada is authorized by order from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice “to pursue all avenues of a sale or refinancing of […]
USW members ratified a new three year contract with US Steel on Monday. The ratification passed by a 2-1 margin and will take effect immediately. “I am extremely proud of the solidarity and the commitment to fairness that the Steelworkers showed throughout this process,” said USW International Vice President Tom Conway, who led the union’s […]
Japan’s number one steelmaker Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp (NSSMC) announced it has begun discussions to buy fourth-ranked rival Nisshin Steel. The target date for the proposed acquisition is March 2017. The global imbalance of steel supply and demand led Nisshan to consider rationalizing its iron and steel making by shutting down operations at […]
The latest MID-SHIP Report reiterates the crisis in the shipping industry calling it “the most significant depression in dry bulk shipping since the mid-1980’s.” The Baltic Dry Index, which tracks shipping rates for dry bulk cargos like iron ore, coal and grain, peaked in May 2008 with an index reading of 11,793 and fell to […]
We thought our readers might be interested in seeing what steel imports were from the American Institute for International Steel perspective. Steel imports declined 12.6 percent in 2015 according to data analyzed by the American Institute for International Steel. The press release from AIIS follows: Falls Church, VA. February 2, 2016. Steel imports closed out […]
The Institute for Supply Management reports that manufacturing activity in January remained in contraction for the fourth consecutive month. The January PMI was 48.2, signaling continued weakness in the manufacturing sector despite overall growth for the economy. The reading was no surprise to economists, coming in just above expectations of 48.1 in a poll by […]
Two fewer selling days and brutal winter weather may have played a part in softer automotive sales in January. GM and FCA sales were up 9 percent and 7 percent, respectively, but Ford sales slipped 3 percent year over year. Toyota and Honda sales were down year over year as were sales for Nissan and […]
Caterpillar says it plans to close five plants in the U.S. as part of a cost-cutting strategy it began last year. The closures at the mining and construction equipment company will mean layoffs for about 670 employees. In September 2015, Caterpillar said global restructuring actions would cut as many as 18,000 jobs through 2018. “Cost […]
The Chicago Business Barometer bounced back in January after a surprise drop in December. The index rose 12.7 points to 55.6 from the previous reading of 42.9. The welcome surge followed a weak quarter averaging 47.7, the lowest average since Q3 2009. January’s increase, however, may not be sustainable said Chief Economist of MNI Indicators […]
Impairment charges contributed to a $62 million net loss for Nucor Corp. in fourth quarter 2015. An impairment charge of $153 million was recorded for the Duferdofin Nucor plant in Italy due to low operating performance. The company also took an $84.1 million non-cash write-down after deciding not to proceed with plans for a blast […]
Closing arguments were heard Wednesday in the eight-day trial to determine if US Steel is owed more than $2.2 billion in debt by US Steel Canada. Lawyers for the union and province said that US Steel is calling equity investments debt as a way to recoup the cost of buying the former Stelco facilities. “What […]
Cliffs Natural Resources narrowed its net loss to $58 million in fourth quarter compared to $1.4 billion in Q4 2014. Full year net loss was $748 million compared to $8.3 billion in the prior year. “Despite the severely negative impacts of global iron ore and domestic steel prices, in 2015 we achieved substantial cost reductions […]
Significantly lower prices and weakened demand for flat rolled and tubular products resulted in big losses for US Steel last year and the outlook for 2016 is not much better. US Steel reported a fourth quarter net loss of $999 million and a net loss of $1.5 billion for full year 2015. The company continues […]
Mexican steelmaker, TYASA, plans to build the first Castrip® mill outside of Nucor at its mini-mill in Ixtaczoquitlan. The new facility will have the capability to produce 500,000 tons of thin-gauge, high-strength. The TYASA steel campus in the state of Veracruz, Mexico is designed to be highly efficiently with environmentally-friendly low emissions. The Simetal EAF […]
USW members outside ArcelorMittal headquarters in Chicago on Wednesday were granted an unexpected interview with Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Lakshmi Mittal. Mittal spoke with union members outside asking why they were rallying. Union leaders were invited in for coffee and a brief discussion with Mittal and ArcelorMittal Americas CEO Lou Schorsch. Union leaders told […]
Steel Market Update is a member of an association connected to the construction industry called HARDI. HARDI stands for Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International. HARDI and The Institute for Trend Research (ITR), an economic forecasting company, work together to gather economic data to provide a forecast to the HARDI members located in the United […]
Steel Dynamics’ struggling recycling segment widened the company’s net loss to $253 million in fourth quarter 2015. It was determined that the book value of the metals recycling segment recorded $435 million in non-cash goodwill and other related asset impairment charge. Excluding the metals recycling charges, adjusted net income was $22 million on net sales […]
AK Steel has intentionally been reducing their exposure to the low-priced spot markets and instead they are looking at the higher end value added products going to automotive and other contract customers. AK Steel results exceeded analyst expectations for fourth quarter. The company reported a net loss of $147.1 million for the fourth quarter of […]
Construction employment increased in the U.S. in December and for 2015 amid strong demand according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America. The press release from AGC follows: Forty-four states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs in 2015 while construction employment increased in 39 states and D.C. between November and […]
Essar Steel Algoma has received permission from a Toronto court to suspend special payments to its pension fund. The announcement alarmed retirees who were unsure what the suspension meant for their monthly pensions and benefits. Would they receive their checks? The decision was explained by Don Barill, president of the Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees […]
Steel Market Update is a member of an association connected to the construction industry called HARDI. HARDI stands for Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International. HARDI and The Institute for Trend Research (ITR), an economic forecasting company, work together to gather economic data to provide a forecast to the HARDI members located in the United […]
China’s economy, the second largest in the world behind the U.S., grew at 6.9 percent in 2015. That was pretty close to its target of 7 percent for the year but also the slowest rate since 1990. Data released by the Chinese government shows fourth quarter growth at 6.8 percent. As recently as 2007 China’s […]