The U.S. Trade Representative is seeking comments on the World Trade Organization challenge by South Korea to U.S. safeguards imposed on imports of large residential washers in February 2018. The WTO established a Dispute Settlement Body panel on Sept. 26 following a request by South Korea in August. The European Union, China, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, […]
Commerce has issued a preliminary affirmative determination in the countervailing duty investigation of steel propane cylinders from China. A preliminary subsidy rate of 42.77 percent has been assigned to Shandong Huanri Group and producers and exporters in the “all other” category. A preliminary rate of 145.37 percent has been assigned to TPA Metals and Machinery […]
United Steelworkers in Canada are rejecting any plan by the U.S. to impose quotas on Canadian steel and aluminum imports. “Canada’s government must emphatically stand up for the Canadian steel and aluminum industries and thousands of families whose livelihoods are at stake,” said USW National Director Ken Neumann. “There is no justification for Canada to […]
Cleveland Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves is looking forward to the completion of the company’s HBI pellet plant in Toledo, Ohio. The project is on time and under budget and construction has begun on the 400-foot tower that will be completed by the end of 2019. Startup of HBI production is anticipated in mid-2020. The company […]
Existing home sales fell in September after a flat August with sales declining in all regions. September sales were a clear shift in the housing market, said the National Association of Realtors, with homes taking slightly longer to sell. Existing home sales declined 3.4 percent from August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.15 […]
Forty-five states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs between September 2017 and September 2018, while 29 states and D.C. added construction jobs between August and September, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data released today. Association officials noted that the continued job gains were a […]
Forty-two states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs between November 2017 and November 2018, while 23 states added construction jobs between October and November, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data released Dec. 21. Association officials said extremely low unemployment rates in most of the […]
A strong economy and equally strong steel demand propelled Nucor Corp. earnings growth in the third quarter. Nucor reported earnings of $676.7 million in the third quarter, which included a non-cash impairment charge of $110.0 million related to its natural gas well assets. In comparison, second quarter net earnings were $683.2 and third quarter 2017 […]
Steel Dynamics announced record financial results for third-quarter 2018. Sales for the quarter totaled $3.2 billion for a net income of $398 million compared to prior-year third-quarter sales of $2.4 billion and net income of $153 million. “Our third-quarter 2018 income from operations of $532 million and adjusted EBITDA of $626 million were both record […]
Details are beginning to leak about the tentative four-year labor contract between the USW and U.S. Steel. Workers will get a 14 percent raise spread across a four-year period, according to Reuters sources. That will be biggest pay raise the steelworkers have seen in several years. No increase was included in the last contract and […]
U.S. Steel and Nucor made their final rebuttals to tariff exclusion requests filed by Evraz NA and California Steel Industries for imports of steel slab. Evraz and CSI maintain that the slabs they require are not readily available in the U.S. Both U.S. Steel and Nucor argue that exclusions would undermine the president’s policy to […]
Housing starts dropped 5.3 percent in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,201,000, falling more than expected by economists. Multi-family housing led the decline, falling 12.9 percent, compared to 0.9 percent for single-family homes. Compared to a year ago, starts were 6.4 percent higher, said the Census Bureau and HUD. “Slight gains off […]
United Steelworkers at U.S. Steel have reached a tentative agreement on a four-year labor contract with the mill, avoiding a potential strike. USW officials said the contract will allow workers and management to move forward in a way “that allows us to share in the company’s success.” “The company came to the bargaining table this […]
NLMK USA sales slipped 8.0 percent in the third quarter to 590,000 metric tons as customers waited to see if steel prices would decline after reaching a high in July. Sales were up 4 percent from third-quarter 2017, driven by a stronger U.S. economy and steel demand. Sales in the first nine months of the […]
United Steelworkers at U.S. Steel have reached a tentative agreement on a four-year labor contract with the mill, avoiding a potential strike. USW officials said the contract will allow workers and management to move forward in a way “that allows us to share in the company’s success.” “The company came to the bargaining table this […]
Manufacturing activity in New York State continues to be strong, according to the October 2018 Empire State Manufacturing Survey published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The general business conditions index rose two points to 21.1 due to a jump in new orders and shipments. The new orders index leapt six points, while […]
Canada will implement provisional safeguard measures on steel imports effective Oct. 25. Tariffs of 25 percent will be applied when products exceed the current average import level. The action is in response to Section 232 tariffs and quotas imposed by the United States on steel and aluminum. Canada hopes to avoid becoming a dumping ground […]
Negotiations between United Steelworkers and ArcelorMittal have stalled on demands for deep concessions that workers consider unfair and unnecessary. USW members agreed to not take a wage increase during the last three-year contract and have had a total wage increase of 4.5 percent since 2012, despite inflation increasing 8 percent. Other industries have seen wages […]
ArcelorMittal announced a binding offer from Liberty House Group for the purchase of ArcelorMittal Ostrava (Czech Republic), ArcelorMittal Galati (Romania), ArcelorMittal Skopje (Macedonia) and ArcelorMittal Piombino (Italy). The transaction is part of a divestment package agreed to by ArcelorMittal with the European Commission for the €1.8 billion acquisition of Italian steel mill Ilva. The ArcelorMittal […]
No one was injured as a result of a small fire at a conveyor belt at ArcelorMittal Cleveland, which was was brought under control by the Cleveland Fire Department on Thursday. The company said it does not expect the incident to affect production at the mill. Firefighters used foam to extinguish flames that persisted for […]
The cost of many products used in construction climbed 7.4 percent over the past year due to double-digit increases in commonly used construction materials, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of new Labor Department data. Association officials noted that the cost increases come as many construction firms are already grappling […]
Retaliatory tariffs are taking aim at those sectors that have been the strongest supporters of President Trump. An analysis of data by the Brookings Institution reports that 6.1 percent of U.S. exports, or $121 billion worth of goods, are now subject to tariffs by China, the European Union, Canada and Mexico. The Trump administration has […]
Damage from Hurricane Michael will result in trucking delays in the Southeast, at least for the short-term. Emergency declarations are in effect for Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. Some regulations will be suspended for trucks assisting with emergency relief, including hours of service restrictions while providing assistance in the […]
California Steel Industries, NLMK and Evraz have filed rebuttals to objections made by U.S. Steel, Nucor and AK Steel to their petitions requesting exclusions for steel slab imports necessary for production. The slab converters charge that domestic mills have misled Commerce in their objections, overstating the current availability of domestic slab and the capacity to […]
Labor negotiations at ArcelorMittal have slowed after making some progress last week. A United Steelworkers update said the union will hold firm against company demands for concessions from members or retirees. The USW negotiating committee at U.S. Steel also reported some progress during discussions last week. Talks are expected to continue this week in Pittsburgh […]
Planning activity for construction of nonresidential buildings declined in September, according to the latest Dodge Momentum Index. The Index slid 2.6 percent to a reading of 159.5. Both commercial and institutional planning projects were lower in September, falling 4.3 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively. The Index has dropped for two consecutive months, but on a […]
U.S. Section 232 tariffs have cost Canada’s Essar Steel Algoma about $55 million from June through August, according to Brian Denega, court appointed monitor overseeing the Algoma restructuring. In addition, the company is required to post a tariff surety bond with U.S. Customs and Border Protection in the amount of $5.25 million. “The U.S. Customs […]
United Steelworkers say there is progress in labor negotiations with ArcelorMittal and U.S. Steel, but significant differences remain between the union and management. Said the USW-ArcelorMittal committee in its negotiation update on Oct. 4: “Again, our committee still has a lot of work to do on the issues that remain before we can present a […]
U.S. automotive sales fell 5.5 percent year-over-year in September. Depending on one’s perspective, they were either good, at a seasonally adjusted annual rate 17.54 million, or a portent of worse times to come. General Motors, which no longer reports monthly sales, said third-quarter sales plunged 11 percent and estimates put September sales down a dismal […]
After months of contentious bargaining, the U.S. has reached a new trilateral trade agreement with Canada and Mexico to replace NAFTA. In last minute negotiations, Canada agreed to give the U.S. increased dairy market access while retaining the Chapter 19 trade remedy dispute settlement. The new treaty, to be called the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), will […]