A sharp decline in new orders and production drove the Institute for Supply Management Manufacturing PMI into contraction in March, falling to 49.1 from February’s reading of 50.1 percent. “The coronavirus pandemic and shocks in global energy markets have impacted all manufacturing sectors,” said Timothy Fiore, chairman of the Institute for Supply Management. New orders […]
Auto sales plummeted in March as stay-at-home orders kept consumers from dealer showrooms. March sales were down significantly following a strong showing in January and February. Toyota Motor NA reported U.S sales tumbled 36.9 percent for the month and 8.8 percent for the quarter. Fiat Chrysler and General Motors noted considerable declines in March and […]
Infrastructure is finally getting some attention again, despite and because of the cornavirus. Congress and the White House are calling for an infrastructure bill to be included in the fourth COVID-19 relief package. “With interest rates for the United States being at ZERO, this is the time to do our decades long awaited Infrastructure Bill,” Trump […]
The COVID-19 crisis caused a spike in truck rates in March as vans and reefers worked to replenish retail stocks and move essential supplies. DAT Trendlines said rates are likely to fall in the coming weeks, however, as fewer load postings occur. Van and reefer rates are expected to stay elevated, whereas flatbed rates and […]
Architecture firms reported fewer new design projects in March as uncertainty grows regarding the length and impact of the coronavirus crisis. A special mid-month survey by the American Institute of Architects found that 28 percent of respondents reported directed delays in current projects or those slated to start in 30 days. An additional 11 percent […]
The January S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Index showed home price growth at 3.9 percent prior to the coronavirus pandemic. “During the next two months, home price gains will likely continue to outpace inflation for Case-Shiller Index values seen through March,” says Frank Nothaft, chief economist at CoreLogic. “This is likely because most sales that settle during […]
The Chicago Business Barometer remained in contraction for the ninth month, declining 1.1 points in March to 47.8. New orders fell 7.9 percent while production slipped back into contraction. Order backlogs rose to their highest level since December 2019. “While some firms reported a rise in orders due to stockpiling by U.S. customers, others noted […]
U.S. Steel announced on Friday a series of aggressive actions to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus and significant demand changes in the oil and gas industry. Flat-rolled: Gary Works—U.S. Steel will idle the #4 blast furnace at Gary Works immediately, moving up a 48-day outage originally planned for April. The scope of the planned […]
AK Steel will idle the C blast furnace at Dearborn Works beginning this week for an undetermined period of time. Dearborn has been impacted by recent shutdowns in the automotive industry and has been criticized for its handling of safety measures during the coronavirus crisis. At least one employee at Dearborn has tested positive for […]
AK Steel will idle the C blast furnace at Dearborn Works beginning this week for an undetermined period of time. Dearborn has been impacted by recent shutdowns in the automotive industry and has been criticized for its handling of safety measures during the coronavirus crisis. At least one employee at the Dearborn steel mill has […]
Worthington Industries reported net sales of $764.0 million and net earnings of $15.3 million for its fiscal 2020 third quarter, ending Feb. 29, 2020. Sales were down 13 percent from the prior year due to lower average selling prices in Steel Processing and lower volumes in Pressure Cylinders. Steel Processing net sales were down 12 […]
Relief for importers paying tariffs was just a short-lived illusion. U.S. Customs and Border Protection walked back a decision last week to provide extensions on tariff payments during the coronavirus crisis. A notice sent on March 20 by CBP stated that it would “approve on a case by case basis additional days for payment of […]
Unemployment claims skyrocketed to nearly 3.3 million last week, compared to 282,000 filings the prior week. The number of Americans that have lost jobs due to the coronavirus is staggering. As governments shutter nonessential businesses and ask employees to stay home, companies have been forced to lay off and cut jobs for an unprecedented number […]
A battle is brewing among legislators, manufacturers and steel producers regarding whether tariff measures should be suspended on imports under Section 301 and Section 232 during the coronavirus crisis. Republican members of the Senate Finance Committee urged President Trump to ease tariff restrictions during the pandemic. In a letter on March 25, the committee exhorted […]
The Great Lakes shipping season officially began yesterday with passage of the upbound freighter H. Lee White through the Soo Locks . “Right on time, at one minute past midnight, the lower gates of the Poe Lock opened and the H. Lee White made its way into the lock, officially opening the 2020 navigation season […]
The American Institute for International Steel is asking the Supreme Court to hear its challenge to the constitutionality of Section 232 following the loss of two appeals in the lower courts. “We are heartened that the Court of International Trade recognized that Section 232, in the court’s words, ‘seem[s] to invite the President to regulate […]
Three auto organizations have sent a joint letter to Congress requesting a delay for entry into force of the USMCA, currently scheduled for June 1. The CEOs of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) and the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA) suggested several policy initiatives to address the COVID-19 […]
Orders for durable goods jumped 1.2 percent in February, but the uptick is not expected to last. Stay-at-home orders and rising unemployment due to the COVID-19 outbreak are likely to stifle demand as the economy heads into a recession. The volatile transportation category saw new orders for civilian aircraft dip 0.3 percent after a 356.7 […]
Despite a flurry of maintenance projects completed in the second half of 2019, several steelmakers are planning outages or idling of operations during the next few months. Steel producing mills have been designated as essential critical infrastructure and are not subject to state COVID-19 shutdowns. ArcelorMittal, however, is adjusting production by idling its IH-4 furnace at Indiana Harbor […]
U.S. Steel and Tenaris will adjust production of tubular products in the U.S. due to low oil prices and declining demand in the oil industry. U.S. Steel plans to idle tubular operations in Texas and Ohio, affecting 850 employees. “U.S. Steel advised employees that Lone Star Tubular Operations in Lone Star, Texas, and Lorain Tubular Operations in […]
Sales of new homes in February rose 4.4 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 765,000, according to estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Compared to February 2019, sales jumped 14 percent. “New home sales were solid in February before challenges associated with the coronavirus set […]
Existing-home sales jumped 6.5 percent in February, with all regions seeing higher sales except the Northeast, reports the National Association of Realtors. Sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.77 million in February, a 7.2 percent gain from a year ago. “February’s sales of over 5 million homes were the strongest since February […]
Editor’s note: Various states, counties and cities have issued some form of “shelter-in-place” or “stay-at-home” orders including California, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Oregon, Ohio, Connecticut and Illinois, as well as cities such as St. Louis, Kansas City, New Orleans and some counties in Colorado, Georgia and Idaho, among others. The list grows by the […]
Cleveland-Cliffs has temporarily shut down construction activity at its hot-briquetted iron (HBI) site in Toledo, Ohio, due to the COVID-19 virus. All construction at the site will cease at the end of the business day on March 20 until further notice. Cleveland-Cliffs’ iron ore mining and steelmaking facilities will continue operations. The Toledo plant is […]
Commercial Metals Company reported a strong second quarter for fiscal year 2020 ending Feb. 29. The Americas Mills segment achieved record second-quarter shipment levels while the International Mill had the highest shipment level for second quarter in 12 years. Earnings for the quarter were $63.6 million on net sales of $1.3 billion. Gross margins jumped […]
U.S. Steel’s performance in the first quarter of 2020 was better than expected with adjusted EBITDA projected at $30 million. “Our Flat-rolled segment results are expected to be better than anticipated as strong operating performance across our footprint, continued cost improvement, and seasonally strong shipment volumes more than offset the typical seasonality of mining,” said […]
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf ordered all non-life-sustaining businesses in Pennsylvania to close their physical locations as of 8 p.m. Friday, March 19, to slow the spread of COVID-19. Life sustaining businesses include grocery stores, gas stations, farms and transit systems. Due to the high volume of waiver requests, enforcement actions against businesses that do not […]
U.S. automakers are suspending production for nearly two weeks to help stop the spread of COVID-19. Ford, General Motors and FCA announced on Wednesday that they will stop all production in North America starting Thursday evening and tentatively ending March 30. “GM and the UAW have always put the health and safety of the people […]
Steel mills in the U.S. are taking precautions to reduce risks to workers and operations from the coronavirus pandemic as production continues. Social distancing and proper hygiene/sanitation is encouraged, non-essential business travel is cancelled, air travel is banned and those personnel who can perform their jobs remotely are allowed to do so. Visitors are limited […]
Steel Dynamics and Nucor are both expecting improved earnings for the first quarter of 2020 due to higher steel prices and increased shipments. So far, the impact from the COVID-19 outbreak has been minimal on supply chains and operations, said the companies. Disruptions are expected, however, as more manufacturers temporarily suspend production and construction activity […]