Steel

• No impact yet from USS lockout: Dofasco May 10, 2013

  Flat-rolled steel producer ArcelorMittal Dofasco Inc. says it has yet to be affected by a union lockout at nearby U.S. Steel Corp.’s Lake Erie Works.

• Accident at Southland Tube kills one worker, injures two others May 10, 2013

  One worker was killed and two others injured in a May 9 accident at Southland Tube Inc.’s Birmingham, Ala., facility.

• Nucor shareholders nix push by fund for full disclosure May 10, 2013

  A majority of Nucor Corp. shareholders defeated a proposal by a Boston-based family of mutual funds to have the steelmaker provide more transparency into its lobbying efforts.

• ArcelorMittal’s losses narrow in 1st qtr. May 10, 2013

  ArcelorMittal SA recorded its third consecutive net loss in the first quarter on the back of challenging economic conditions but anticipates positive signs in the second half of the year, particularly in its Americas division.

• Steel sheet spot prices down again May 10, 2013

  Steel sheet prices softened this past week as market participants continued to cite overcapacity and too many players chasing too little business as top concerns.

• Alton Steel union OKs 2-year labor extension May 10, 2013

  Members of United Steelworkers union Local 3643 ratified a two-year contract extension May 5 with Alton Steel Co., which local president Terry Wooden called a win-win for both sides.

• ITC sees indication of injury from Japan flat steel imports May 10, 2013

  The U.S. International Trade Commission voted May 10 that there is reasonable indication that the domestic industry is materially injured by imports of diffusion-annealed, nickel-plated, flat-rolled steel products from Japan.

• Cadillac lightweights luxury cars with aluminum, AHSS parts May 10, 2013

  Greater use of aluminum is helping Cadillac reduce overall weight of its ATS and CTS sedans, the luxury automaker said.

• Tenaris debuts two new premium connections May 10, 2013

  Tenaris SA launched two new premium connections for deepwater drilling during the Offshore Technology Conference in Houston.

• Synalloy unit wins Mexico piping systems deal May 10, 2013

  Synalloy Corp.’s Ram-Fab subsidiary has won a $6-million fabrication contract to provide high-nickel alloy, stainless and carbon steel piping systems for the Mexico-based operations of a Fortune-500 chemical manufacturing company.

• Rebar prices softening amid patchy demand May 10, 2013

  Reinforcing bar demand remains spotty nationwide, with some regions seeing a flurry of activity and others reportedly thirsty for work.

• Margin squeeze, inflation hit Brazil slab exports May 10, 2013

  The ongoing margin squeeze in the global steel industry coupled with an overvalued currency and rising inflation in Brazil have severely affected the Latin American nation’s slab exports.

• Ontario court fines Algoma Tubes $70,000 May 10, 2013

  Algoma Tubes Inc. has been fined $70,000 by the Ontario Provincial Offences Court for alleged Occupational Health and Safety Act violations that led to the injury of two workers, according to the court.

• Weakening yen ‘reshaping' Asian steel sector May 10, 2013

  The continued weakening of the Japanese currency is expected to reshape the competitive landscape of the Asian steel sector, according to analysts at Credit Suisse Group AG.

• NW Pipe sues TK over alleged defective coil May 09, 2013

  Northwest Pipe Co. has filed a $1.9-million lawsuit against ThyssenKrupp Steel USA LLC over a shipment of steel coil that was allegedly defective, forcing the Vancouver, Wash.-based pipe and tube maker to buy steel plate from a third party instead.

• Steel exports up 6.1% in March vs. February May 09, 2013

  Increased line pipe and heavy structural product shipments helped lift steel exports in March, data from the Commerce Department’s Import Administration show.

• Steel wire rod prices flat but demand lags May 09, 2013

  Activity in the steel wire rod market has failed to meet expectations in May, and both buyers and suppliers say they’ve seen little if any improvement in demand over the past few weeks.

• Essar confirms $50M credit amendment May 09, 2013

  Essar Steel Algoma Inc. has confirmed that the company’s lenders have approved an amendment to its credit agreement intended to reinforce the flat-rolled steelmaker’s liquidity position.

• Steel mill product trade deficit shrinks May 09, 2013

  The trade deficit between iron and steel mill product imports and exports, valued at $544 million, fell 20 percent in March after growing 11.5 percent in February as imports declined at more than twice the rate of exports, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

• Inquiries on conflict minerals rise May 09, 2013

  Regulations on the sourcing of tantalum, tin and tungsten are creating legal headaches in the U.S. manufacturing supply chain, according to panelists at the recent MetalMiner-sponsored Conflict Minerals Edge conference in Chicago.

• Import reliance said harming defense May 09, 2013

  Several congressmen and a retired U.S. Army brigadier general are calling on the federal government to reduce its dependence on foreign-sourced raw materials used in defense equipment.

• Japan's steel output seen topping 27.5M tonnes in qtr. May 09, 2013

  Japanese steel output is forecast to reach 27.58 million tonnes in the current fiscal quarter, its highest level since the fourth quarter of 2010, amid continued growth in reconstruction and export demand, Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (Meti) said.

• Chinese steel demand will peak in 2030: Rio Tinto exec May 09, 2013

  China’s steel demand will peak at about 1 billion tonnes in 2030, according to an executive at Rio Tinto Plc.

• Construction, auto production outlook upbeat at AISTech May 08, 2013

  Nonresidential construction could return to pre-recession levels within the next few years, with U.S. light vehicle output hitting 17 million units annually by 2018, panelists said May 8 at the Association for Iron and Steel Technology’s AISTech 2013 conference.