Steel

• JSW said putting brakes on Texas pipe mill expansion Dec 12, 2008

  India’s JSW Steel Ltd. plans to delay expansion plans at its pipe mill in Texas, according to a report by Bloomberg.

• Auto bailout failure condemned, Bush may step in Dec 12, 2008

  The failure of the Senate to pass a $14 billion auto recovery plan came under fire Friday, though reports that the White House could authorize funding for embattled automakers held out some hope for the sector.

• Volatility bites into J.P. Morgan coking coal price forecasts Dec 12, 2008

  J.P. Morgan Securities Inc., New York, has lowered its price forecasts for coking coal to $135 a tonne from $200 a tonne for 2009 and 2010.

• Cardero Resources plans pig iron program Dec 12, 2008

  Cardero Resources Corp. is undertaking a pilot program to make pig iron from iron ore concentrate at the Pampa El Toro site in the Marcona district of southern Peru.

• Latrobe awarded $16.6M in DoD technology funds Dec 12, 2008

  Latrobe Specialty Steel Co. has received a technology investment from the U.S. Defense Department that the steelmaker said will help reduce production lead times by increasing output capacity for specific vacuum melted or remelted alloys.

• US steel imports rise 5.7% in October Dec 11, 2008

  U.S. steel product imports increased in October, according to final figures released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

• BHP, Anglo American seen following Rio’s lead on cuts Dec 11, 2008

  BHP Billiton and Anglo American Plc are expected to follow Rio Tinto in coming weeks in setting stiff cost-cutting measures, including project delays and staff cuts, analysts said.

• Final stainless import tally up 0.8% from earlier report Dec 11, 2008

  U.S. imports of stainless steel products in October increased 0.8 percent to 79,481 tonnes compared with preliminary figures provided earlier this month by the Census Bureau.

• Evraz Inc. NA’s plate, pipe operations brace for layoffs Dec 11, 2008

  Evraz Inc. NA’s plate and pipe operations are the latest to feel the heat of shrinking steel industry demand.

• Evraz Inc. NA’s plate, pipe operations brace for layoffs Dec 11, 2008

  Evraz Inc. NA’s plate and pipe operations are the latest to feel the heat of shrinking steel industry demand.

• US steel imports rise 5.7% in October Dec 11, 2008

  U.S. steel product imports increased in October, according to final figures released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

• US steel imports rise 5.7% in October Dec 11, 2008

  U.S. steel product imports increased in October, according to final figures released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

• Teck asset sales may include met coal Dec 11, 2008

  Teck Cominco Ltd., Vancouver, British Columbia, could include minority stakes in metallurgical coal operations among possible asset sales late next year.

• Turkey orders for ferrous scrap start to trickle in Dec 11, 2008

  Ferrous scrap demand from Turkish mills and other Mediterranean scrap consumers hasn’t revived to the levels seen earlier this year, but they are buying scrap from offshore suppliers on a hand-to-mouth basis, according to one U.S. trader said.

• China exports fall but higher than expected Dec 11, 2008

  A 36-percent decline in Chinese steel exports in November was smaller than market sources had expected.

• Global price watch Dec 11, 2008

  Wuhan Iron & Steel Co. Ltd. has lowered its list prices by up to 400 yuan ($58) per tonne for January production, according to market sources. China’s fourth-largest steel mill is cutting cold-rolled coil by 120 yuan ($17.50) per tonne to 3,590 yuan ($524) per tonne, hot-dipped galvanized coil by 350 yuan ($51) per tonne and plate by 400 yuan ($58) per tonne, traders said.

• Siemens VAI wins Russian order Dec 11, 2008

  Siemens VAI Metals Technologies GmbH, Linz, Austria, has received an order from Russia’s OJSC Novolipetsk Iron & Steel Works for the installation of dedusting systems and auxiliary equipment for a new LD basic oxygen furnace converter in its No. 2 steelworks.

• Alcan in focus as Rio slashes debt, jobs Dec 10, 2008

  Rio Tinto’s announcement that it plans to slash jobs and sell assets in an attempt to pay down its large debt levels has focused attention on the future of its Alcan unit, though analysts said it would be hard for Rio to bring itself to sell the Canadian aluminum producer—and perhaps even harder to find a buyer if it did.

• USW still hopeful on fate of ArcelorMittal Ill. plant Dec 10, 2008

  While difficult economic conditions are taking a toll on the steel industry, plagued by plant shutdowns, some are holding out hope that some can be saved.

• USW still hopeful on fate of ArcelorMittal plant in Ill. Dec 10, 2008

  While difficult economic conditions are taking a toll on the steel industry, plagued by plant shutdowns, some are holding out hope that some can be saved.

• IOC shelves expansion as Rio cuts back Dec 10, 2008

  Iron Ore Co. of Canada (IOC) is suspending its planned $800-million expansion of mining operations in Labrador City, Newfoundland and Labrador, a company spokesman said.

• IOC shelves expansion as Rio cuts back Dec 10, 2008

  Iron Ore Co. of Canada (IOC) is suspending its planned $800-million expansion of mining operations in Labrador City, Newfoundland and Labrador, a company spokesman said.

• Wheeling-Nisshin forced to cut workers Dec 10, 2008

  Wheeling-Nisshin Inc., Follansbee, W.Va., is the latest to join the list of steel companies being forced to temporarily lay off workers due to a lack of orders.

• USS rescinds $200/T pipe hike Dec 10, 2008

  U.S. Steel Corp. has rescinded a $200-per-ton ($10-per-hundredweight) increase on seamless pipe imposed in October, according to a market source.