Steel

• USS Edgar Thomson output not impacted by accident Dec 17, 2012

  A fire at U.S. Steel Corp.’s Edgar Thomson plant in Braddock, Pa., Saturday night led to the air evacuation of a worker but did not disrupt production, a company spokeswoman told AMM.

• Funding issues threaten Optima, KES deal Dec 17, 2012

  Seamless tube and cold-finished bar producer Optima Specialty Steel Inc. has been unable to obtain funding for its proposed $112.5-million acquisition of special bar quality (SBQ) and merchant bar quality flats producer Kentucky Electric Steel LLC (KES), putting the deal in jeopardy.

• Voestalpine mulls Houston greenfield facility Dec 17, 2012

  Austria’s Voestalpine Group is considering Houston as a possible location for a U.S. greenfield facility, according to sources familiar with the matter.

• Glen Kassan to retire as H&H chief Dec 17, 2012

  Handy & Harman Ltd. chief executive officer Glen M. Kassan is retiring effective Dec. 31.

• Canadian steel OK'd for border crossing Dec 17, 2012

  The U.S. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has decided to partially waive "Buy America" requirements for the construction of a new border crossing between the United States and Canada.

• China's stainless outlook for first quarter bright despite rising supply Dec 17, 2012

  The first-quarter outlook for China’s stainless steel market is upbeat despite rising supply.

• Steel mill exports reach five-month high Dec 17, 2012

  U.S. steel mill product exports jumped to a five-month high in October on gains in heavy structural shapes, hot-dipped galvanized sheet and strip, and standard rails.

• China's 40% export tax on coke to be nixed Dec 17, 2012

  China will remove a 40-percent export tax on coke in 2013.

• US drilling slips, Canada climbs Dec 17, 2012

  The number of drill rigs running in the United States fell by one last week, while Canadian drilling increased by 12 rigs compared with the previous week.

• Lawsuit to stop construction of Nucor DRI facility dismissed Dec 14, 2012

  A federal judge has dismissed a complaint filed by a grain company trying to force steelmaker Nucor Corp. to stop construction on its nearby direct-reduced iron (DRI) facility in St. James Parish, La.

• Atkore losses slim in 4th qtr. on higher sales Dec 14, 2012

  Atkore International Holding Inc.’s losses narrowed in the fourth quarter as higher sales volumes and lower raw material costs helped offset lower average selling prices.

• Commerce sets duty on Chinese OCTG Dec 14, 2012

  In the final results of an anti-dumping duty administrative review of imports of certain oil country tubular goods from China from May 19, 2010, to April 30, 2011, the Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration (ITA) has determined that Jiangsu Chengde Steel Tube Share Co. Ltd., Taizhou Chengde Steel Tube Co. Ltd. and Yangzhou Chengde Steel Tube Co. Ltd. (collectively known as Chengde Group) made sales in the United States at prices below normal value.

• Timken steel mill fined $170,500 by OSHA Dec 14, 2012

  Timken Co. has been fined $170,500 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for 12 safety violations stemming from a June inspection of its Canton, Ohio, steel mill.

• Plate demand ‘light,’ lead times shrink Dec 14, 2012

  Minimal demand has been weighing on the steel plate market, with sources pointing to short lead times as an indicator of slow business conditions.

• Caucus urges Navy to use US steel for ships Dec 14, 2012

  The Congressional Steel Caucus has urged the Pentagon to use American-made steel for Navy shipbuilding projects.

• TK’s new melt shop expected to pressure mart Dec 14, 2012

  The domestic stainless market might see little immediate impact from the start-up of ThyssenKrupp Stainless USA Inc.’s melt shop at its Calvert, Ala., facility, although at full capacity it is expected to put pressure on the domestic stainless market, sources told AMM.

• Don’t hold your breath, as a Chinese iron ore tax cut may not fly: mart Dec 14, 2012

  Despite recent speculation that the Chinese government could support domestic iron ore producers by slashing taxes by as much as half, such a move may be unlikely as it would be very complicated and possibly ineffective in practice, sources told AMM sister publication Steel First.

• SGX eyes iron ore futures as US tightens OTC rules Dec 14, 2012

  The Singapore Exchange (SGX) plans to launch an iron ore futures contract in January as the United States tightens its over-the-counter (OTC) trading rules, market sources told AMM sister publication Steel First.

• Letter to the Editor: Chinese steel plate makers maintain high import duties Dec 14, 2012

  I appreciate the opportunity to comment on your Dec. 10, 2012, article entitled "Chinese producers excluded from anti-dumping review of carbon steel plate."

• W. Coast steel plate prices poised to rise Dec 13, 2012

  West Coast carbon steel plate prices are moving up, but not across the board and by nowhere near the amount targeted by mills.

• Rod market fails to secure full price increase Dec 13, 2012

  Wire rod prices have risen in recent weeks but a slowdown in demand and pressure from imports have prevented price hikes from being fully realized, sources said.

• Mill sale said ‘death knell’ for Sparrows Point Dec 13, 2012

  The sale of portions of the cold mill at the former RG Steel LLC Sparrows Point, Md., complex could signal the end of steelmaking at the site forever, market sources say, noting that few buyers will be interested in the integrated site with the state-of-the-art cold mill no longer part of the package.

• Severstal joins $20/T sheet price hike Dec 13, 2012

  Severstal North America Inc. has joined other domestic steelmakers in increasing its prices for flat-rolled products by $20 per ton ($1 per hundredweight).

• SBQ demand depressed; prices dip Dec 13, 2012

  December has shaped into a rather grim month for buyers and sellers of special bar quality (SBQ) products, with grave uncertainties leading market participants to stand pat on their inventories and resist taking deliveries before the first of the year.