Even though I personally believe steel prices will probably not go too much lower from here, we still have the SMU Price Momentum Indicator pointing toward lower pricing. We are looking for signs that the slide may be about over but, we continue to see weakness on hot rolled products. We got a note from […] The post Final Thoughts appeared first on Steel Market Update.
On Thursday we reported scrap prices moved sideways on certain grades in the east and were down by as much as $30 per gross ton the further west you went. Chicago ended up the week with the weakest prices as many mills did not buy due to tepid demand and a desire to drive inventories […] The post Regional Scrap Prices Come into Focus appeared first on Steel Market Update.
Our scrap sources reported ferrous scrap prices as having the most strength in the east where export pricing has bounced off the bottom and momentum has apparently turned in that region. One of the east coast dealers told us that scrap flows are “atrocious” and if it wasn’t for the “terrible demand situation the market […] The post Scrap Prices Take Another Dip Lower but Dealers Think This is the Bottom… appeared first on Steel Market Update.
We will begin our next flat rolled steel market analysis with an invitation to participate in our questionnaire going out at 8 AM on Monday morning. If you receive an invite please take a few minutes to click on the link and complete the questionnaire. Steel Market Update will be moving our headquarters over the […] The post Final Thoughts appeared first on Steel Market Update.
As we headed into October negotiations, the ferrous scrap dealers knew prices would be down anywhere from $20 to $50 per ton. As negotiations got into full swing it was apparent the lower end of the range was nowhere near $20 as prices quickly collapsed by $50 per gross ton. The issues have been the […] The post October Scrap Settles Down $50-$60 appeared first on Steel Market Update.
A debate has begun as to when flat rolled steel prices will bottom and begin to reverse course. Part of that dialogue is what will supply look like should US Steel go through with balancing their production by temporarily taking down their Granite City Works. This would be on top of the trade suits which […] The post Removal of Supply Should Tighten Market – The Question is When? appeared first on Steel Market Update.
The U.S. is not (yet) a closed market and therefore we have to remain aware of what is going on around the rest of the world and especially in China (iron ore/billets/steel) and Turkey (scrap). Ferrous scrap prices are expected to drop significantly for October 2015 shipment. When we checked with a couple of our […] The post Pressure Will Continue on Ferrous Scrap Prices appeared first on Steel Market Update.
Steel Market Update (SMU) sources reported the domestic steel mills have canceled any remaining ferrous scrap tonnage that was not delivered during the month of September. This is normal when the mills believe that they will be able to negotiate lower prices for October delivery. As reported earlier this week, the expectation is for scrap […] The post Steel Mills Cancel September Scrap Orders in Anticipation of October Swoon appeared first on Steel Market Update.
We ended the month of September recognizing that not only have steel prices been falling but the Momentum behind pricing turned negative during the month. Our SMU Price Momentum Indicator is now pointing toward Lower prices to be seen in the coming month or longer. Sentiment, another Key Market Indicator, has been dropping as you […] The post End of Month Review: September 2015 appeared first on Steel Market Update.
We will be in Iowa next week for one of our Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshops. We are looking forward to working with SSAB again, as we did a workshop in Mobile, Alabama and toured their Alabama facility. This is our first trip to Iowa. We are working on ironing […] The post Final Thoughts appeared first on Steel Market Update.