US market on course for another good year

摘要

DRI's Carter said demand will hold up as long as the US economy continues its modest climb. He said the economy was much stronger than expected in the first quarter, due to surprisingly high investment spending, particularly for construction which was hampered by bad weather. He said lower imports of finished steel are also keeping US mills' shipments high. Bradford said that despite weak long products markets, overall steel demand is healthy due to strong demand for flat rolled steel. He said flat product prices are also improving with the assistance of supply tightness due to several unplanned outages. "The situation is good and improving among the large integrated steelmakers," Bradford wrote in his monthly report. "Sheet prices are on the uptrend because of strong demand and reduced supply."