The following article on the hot rolled coil (HRC) steel and financial futures markets was written by Jack Marshall of Crunch Risk LLC. Here is how Jack saw trading over the past week: Steel A large drop in the HR index used to settle the CME HR contract last week helped push April to settle […] The post Hot Rolled Futures: HR Market Values Uneven During Covid-19 Shutdowns appeared first on Steel Market Update.
Buyers of flat rolled and plate steels provided insights into the market to Steel Market Update throughout the day. On the flat rolled side, steel buyers seemed to be resigned to paying higher prices. Flat rolled price quotes are firming at the domestic mills, and the mills may well achieve their desired minimums of $500-$520 […] The post Steel Buyers React to New Prices, Demand Levels appeared first on Steel Market Update.
Buyers of flat rolled and plate steels provided insights into the market to Steel Market Update throughout the day. On the flat rolled side, steel buyers seemed to be resigned to paying higher prices. Flat rolled price quotes are firming at the domestic mills, and the mills may well achieve their desired minimums of $500-$520 […] The post Steel Buyers React to New Prices, Demand Levels appeared first on Steel Market Update.
Prices of steelmaking raw materials all declined in April, reflecting the initial impact of coronavirus shutdowns and the idling of steelmaking facilities all over the world. Generally speaking, rising supplies and lower demand are likely to keep downward pressure on iron ore, coking coal, pig iron, scrap and zinc in the months to come. Table […] The post Raw Materials Prices: Iron Ore, Coking Coal, Pig Iron, Scrap, Zinc appeared first on Steel Market Update.
Both steel and scrap prices decreased in the month of April, down anywhere from $15 to $75 per ton between each product, as the effects of the coronavirus shutdowns impacted the market. SMU Buyers Sentiment Index readings showed significant declines over March, with Current Sentiment sliding into negative territory and reaching a low of -8, […] The post SMU’s April At-a-Glance appeared first on Steel Market Update.
“Vacation: An extended period of recreating, especially one spent away from home or traveling.” Last week I took “vacation” time off, and unlike the definition above I did little recreating, rarely strayed from home, and did no traveling. How restful is that? The big news from last week was an apparent “firming” of steel prices. […] The post Final Thoughts appeared first on Steel Market Update.
Today, Steel Market Update adjusted our flat rolled Price Momentum Indicator to Neutral. We are of the opinion, based on intelligence we are gleaning from steel buyers, that steel prices are in transition. We no longer believe prices on hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized and Galvalume will decline over the next 30 days. However, a […] The post SMU Moves Price Momentum Indicator to Neutral appeared first on Steel Market Update.
Nucor has resumed production at its Louisiana direct-reduced-iron plant, but its DRI facility in Trinidad remains closed. As company executives reported during their conference call on Tuesday, the Louisiana facility was brought safely back online after a brief pause earlier this month. “Our DRI plants give us a great deal of flexibility and are a […] The post Nucor’s Louisiana DRI Plant Back in Operation appeared first on Steel Market Update.
“The scrap market is almost certainly going to go sideways if not higher in May due to the extreme supply squeeze we have seen this month,” said CRU Senior Analyst Ryan McKinley. Ferrous scrap prices weakened for much of the first quarter, punctuated by a $30-50 per ton decrease in April. But May scrap prices […] The post Scrap Prices to Gain Support from Tight Supplies in May appeared first on Steel Market Update.
John Packard is taking some time off. May could be a pivotal month for the U.S. economy and the steel industry. No reasonable person believes we will have the virus crisis behind us, but we should at least have more clarity on what lies ahead. States, to one degree or another, are loosening their restrictions […] The post Final Thoughts appeared first on Steel Market Update.