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Preliminary March imports rose 1.4% to 2.48 million tons (mt) from 2.44 mt in February as…
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Domestic Raw Steel Production, Utilization Fall from Recent Peaks
For the week ending April 20, 2013, weekly domestic raw steel production fell to 1.858 million tons (mt), a1.2% drop from 1.880 mt last week, which was the highest level since August 11, 2012. Production also declined 7.2% from the year-ago level of 2.003 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 was at 77.6%, down from 78.5% last week, which was the highest since May 26, 2012. Capacity utilization was also down from the year-ago level of 81.1%.
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 Down from One-Month High
The spot reference price for 62% Fe iron ore cfr North China fell 2.1% to $138.00 for the week ending April 19, 2013, dropping slightly from last week’s price of $141.00, which was the highest since March 12, 2013.
The spot price for iron ore averaged $139.35 in 2Q12, $112.12 in 3Q12, and $120.57 in 4Q12; this compares to an average of $128.30 for full-year 2012.
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 Falls Slightly, Canadian Rig Count Continues Downward Spiral
The number of active oil and natural gas rigs in the United States fell 0.7% from last week’s count of 1,771 to 1,758 for the week ending April 19, 2013 and is 10.9% below the year-ago level of 1,972.
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 fell for the eighth consecutive week, dropping 19.2% from 156 to 126, which is the lowest count since May 18, 2012. The rig count is also down 13.7% from the year-ago level of 146.
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.
March Global Steel Production Bucks Normal Seasonal Trend, Falling 1.7%
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March global steel production bucked the normal season uptick of 1.2%, declining some 1.7% from February’s all-time record of 4.43 million tonnes per day (mtpd) to…more.
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Advance/Decliner Index Rises on Chinese Pricing Improvement, but Remains at Low Level
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Our Advance/Decliner Index posted its first uptick in seven weeks as our China Index advanced on bullish newsflow, but our Ex-China hit a six-month low as…more
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March Steel Distributor Shipments Show Surprising Weakness; Inventory Decline Stalled
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March MSCI shipments bucked the normal seasonal improvement of 2.2%, declining a disappointing 3.0% from February’s nine-month high to the lowest level since… more
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March Chinese Steel Production Falls but Still at Second Highest Ever
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Final March Chinese steel production declined 3.2% from February’s record 2.21 million tonnes per day (mtpd), but at 2.14 mtpd was still the second highest on record…more
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Domestic Raw Steel Production Climbs to Highest Since Last August, Capacity Utilization Highest Since May 2012
For the week ending April 13, 2013, weekly domestic raw steel production rose to 1.880 million tons (mt), up 1.2% from 1.858 mt last week and the highest level since the week ending August 11, 2012. Despite the increase, production is down 4.8% from the year-ago level of 1.975 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 was at 78.5%, up from 77.6% last week and the highest since May 26, 2012. However, capacity utilization was down from the year-ago level of 79.9%.
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 Climbs to One-Month High
The spot reference price for 62% Fe iron ore cfr North China rose 3.8% to $141.00 for the week ending April 12, 2013, the highest since March 12, 2013, but still some 11.3% below the 2013 high of $158.90 on February 20.
The spot price for iron ore averaged $139.35 in 2Q12, $112.12 in 3Q12, and $120.57 in 4Q12; this compares to an average of $128.30 for full-year 2012.
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
