This Morning in Metals: Chinese Steelmaking Hub Orders Production Cuts Over Next Week

Tangshan Orders Production Curbs

The industrial city if Tangshan has ordered steel mills to cut production by half for the week of Oct. 11-18, Reuters reported.
MetalMiner’s Take: Cuts related to weather in the main steelmaking hub may provide additional support to increasing Chinese prices. Chinese steel prices have been increasing since April 2018, when prices started to rally. Chinese steel prices are also supported by the upcoming winter season. Increasing Chinese prices commonly support U.S. steel prices.

AK Steel Wins $1.2M DOE Award

AK Steel has won a $1.2 million award from the Department of Energy, aimed toward investigating “novel low density steels in the laboratory, which could ultimately be used in automotive structural applications,” according to an AK Steel release.

“AK Steel is honored to have been selected by the Department of Energy to participate in this work to drive leading edge research in new steel technologies,” AK Steel CEO Roger K. Newport said. “Research into products such as low density steel alloys continues to showcase the capability of steel to provide innovative solutions for our customers, and the breadth of opportunity for further steel innovations.”

Novelis Breaks Ground in China

Novelis announced it had broken ground on an automotive aluminum facility in Changzhou, China.
MetalMiner’s Annual Outlook provides 2018 buying strategies for carbon steel
“The $180 million investment will double the facility’s production capacity of heat-treated aluminum sheet by 100,000 metric tons in order to better meet the growing demand for automotive aluminum in Asia,” a Novelis release stated. “The facility will also be equipped with a high-speed slitter, and a fully automated packaging line. The expansion is expected to create approximately 160 jobs.”