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AK Steel announced a leading $40/ton sheet hike this afternoon, the second increase in three weeks. We suspect AK’s move is…
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Posts Tagged: ‘global steel’
Second Sheet Price Increase Increasingly Likely
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We suspect we’ll see a second price increase announced, with about half of the original $50/ton May 22 sheet price hike sticking at the three-week mark. This is the first time…
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Advance/Decliner Index Remains Weak
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Our Advance/Decliner Index rose to a seven-week high as domestic sheet prices continued to climb and Chinese prices strengthened on the back of…
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YTD May Chinese Steel Exports Up Whopping 22%; Bao Cuts Prices
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May Chinese net steel exports declined 3.3% to 4.11 million tonnes (mt) from April’s post-recession high of 4.25 mt as gross steel exports…
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Iron Ore Price Posts Nominal Pick-up
The spot reference price for 62% Fe iron ore cfr North China rose 0.5% to $110.90 for the week ending June 7, 2013 but remained near an eight-month low and is some 30.2% below the recent peak of $158.90 on February 20, 2013.
The spot price for iron ore averaged $139.35 in 2Q12, $112.12 in 3Q12, $120.57 in 4Q12, and $148.16 in 1Q13; the full-year 2012 average was $128.30.
The post-recession low was $59.10 on March 27, 2009, while the high was $190.19 on February 17, 2011.
Source: The Steel Index
June Scrap Prices Hold Up Better than Expected
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According to published data from American Metal Market (AMM), June prime and shredded scrap prices diverged due to…
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Domestic Raw Steel Production Falls for Second Week
Weekly domestic raw steel production decreased for the second consecutive week to 1.844 million tons (mt) for the week ending June 1, down 0.3% from 1.850 mt last week, and 4.0% below the year-ago level of 1.920 mt.
We would caution readers that only half of the AISI reporting companies release their weekly production in “real time” so the other half of this data is estimated using the last month’s reported production & operating rate. What this means is that when production is changing, the weekly data is actually understating the change.
Capacity utilization fell to 77.0% this week, down from 77.2% last week, and was slightly below the year-ago level of 77.7%.
The lowest production since the recession began was 800,000 tons for the week of December 27, 2008, while the highest was 2.005 mt for the week of May 12, 2012. The lowest capacity utilization rate since the recession began was 33.5% for the week of December 27, 2008; the highest was 81.1% on May 12, 2012.
Source: AISI and Steel Market Intelligence
Iron Ore Price Drops Near Eight-Month Low
The spot reference price for 62% Fe iron ore cfr North China fell 10.4% to $110.40 for the week ending May 31, 2013, the lowest since October 8, 2012 and some 30.5% below the recent high of $158.90 on February 20.
The spot price for iron ore averaged $139.35 in 2Q12, $112.12 in 3Q12, $120.57 in 4Q12, and $148.16 in 1Q13; the full-year 2012 average was $128.30.
The post-recession low was $59.10 on March 27, 2009, while the high was $190.19 on February 17, 2011.
Source: The Steel Index
U.S. Rig Count Rises Slightly, Canadian Rig Count Increases for Third Week
The number of active oil and natural gas rigs in the United States rose to 1,771 for the week ending May 31, 2013, up 0.5% from last week’s count of 1,762 but 10.6% below the year-ago level of 1,980.
The highest weekly rig count in the United States since 1940 was recorded on December 28, 1981, at 4,530; the lowest was recorded on April 23, 1999, at 488.
The number of rigs in Canada rose 10.7% to 145, some 22.9% above the three-year low of 118. Despite the climb, rigs are down 7.1% compared to last year’s count of 156.
The highest rig count for Canada was 727 on February 3, 2006; the lowest was 29, recorded on April 24, 1992.
Source: Baker Hughes Inc.
Advance/Decliner Index Falls Slightly as Chinese Pricing Continues to Deteriorate
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Our Advance/Decliner Index fell last week as pricing weakness spread to Latin America, driving our Ex-China Index down. Our China Index remained at a dismal level due to…
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