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The July ISM Steel Survey continues to reflect American manufacturing’s scaled-back expectations for the US economy as well as increasing uncertainty, driven largely by worries about… more

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TMS International (TMS) reported 2Q EBITDA of $37.8m, slightly ahead of the Street’s $36.7m and the $33.5m recorded in the year-ago period.  The yoy improvement is due to… more

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A.M. Castle (CAS) reported a 2Q loss of $(0.13)/share, which adjusted to a profit of $0.11/share after non-recurring items, well short of the Street’s $0.29 and 1Q’s clean $0.29/share. The sequential drop was driven by… more

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Steel Market Production Increases – Mexican steelmaker Ternium has announced the installation of a new 700,000 tpy two-strand continuous slab caster at its Argentinian subsidiary Ternium Siderar that is scheduled to come online in 2013.

Steel Market Production Increases – Brazilian steelmaker Gerdau’s new 770,000 tpy capacity hot rolled coil mill in Brazil is scheduled to start operations in late 2012.

Steel Market Production Increases – Brazilian steelmaker Gerdau’s Gerdau Kalyani JV in India will begin operating at a rate of 350,000 tpy of crude steel output this month.

Sources: Steel Business Briefing, SteelOrbis, 

After declining for 3 straight weeks, the number of active oil and natural gas rigs in the United States rose to 1,930 for the week ending August 3, 2012, up 0.3%  from the prior week and up a scant 0.5% from the year-ago level.

The highest weekly rig count in theUnited Statessince 1940 was recorded on December 28, 1981, at 4,530; the lowest was recorded on April 23, 1999, at 488.

After 5 straight weeks of increases, the number of rigs in Canada fell this week by 10.36%  to 303 compared with 338 last week and down 30.18% from the year-ago level.

The highest rig count forCanadawas 727 on February 3, 2006; the lowest was 29, recorded on April 24, 1992.

Source: Baker Hughes Inc.

Steel Market Production Cuts – U.S. Steel plans to shut down its 2.8 million tpy capacity blast furnace at its Gary Works later this month for maintenance with production scheduled to restart in early October.

Steel Market Production Cuts – Chinese steelmaker Tianjin Tiantie Metallurgical Group has delayed the restart of a 2.5 million tpy hot metal blast furnace until September.

Steel Market Production Cuts – Chinese steelmaker Zenith Steel closed a blast furnace on July 16^th for one month of maintenance that will reduce hot metal production by 90,000 tonnes.

Steel Market Production Cuts– Chinese steelmaker Chongqing Iron & Steel (Chonggang) is reportedly planning to bank one 2,500 cubic meter blast furnace for 40-45 days starting on August 5^th.

Steel Market Production Cuts – Due to the power outages across India’s Punjabstate, steelmakers were ordered to shut down EAFs, furnaces, and rolling mills for three days a week starting July 24^{th _} effectively reducing production by about 80% in an area that produces 12,500 tonnes per day.

Steel Market Production Cuts – Riva, the main rebar producer in France, is planning to suspend production for 4 weeks at the end of this week in an effort to support prices.

Steel Market Production Increase – Sometime this month, Syrian rebar producer Hmisho Steel plans to commission a new 800,000 tpy billet meltshop.

Sources: Steel Business Briefing, SteelGuru