Steel Output Mounting The Steel industry, which consists of companies engaged in the extraction of iron ore and coke coal for the processing of iron and steel, has the major chunk of sales concentrated with a few producers. The industry includes metal ore exploration and mining services, iron and steel foundries for smelting, rolling, forging, spinning, recycling, stamping, polishing and plating of iron and steel products such as pipes, tubes, wire, spring, rolls and bars. The largest drivers of steel consumption have historically been the automotive and construction markets, which make up more than 50% of total steel consumption. Other steel consuming industries include appliances, converters, containers, tin, energy, electrical equipment, agricultural, domestic and commercial equipment and industrial machinery. Large automakers such as General Motors, Ford Motor Company ([url=http://www.zacks.com/stock/quote/f]F[/url]), Toyota Motor Corporation ([url=http://www.zacks.com/stock/quote/tm]TM[/url]) and Honda Motor Company ([url=http://www.zacks.com/stock/quote/hmc]HMC[/url]) depend upon the steel industry. ArcelorMittal ([url=http://www.zacks.com/stock/quote/mt]MT[/url]) is ...

John Derrick, our director of research, put this together for last weekrsquo;s Investor Alert. After nearly doubling in the first seven months of the year, the domestic Chinese stock market fell more than 20 percent in August. China had led the world out of recession, its aggressive stimulus and other government programs helping to stabilize its domestic economy. With the August stock market drop, the conventional thinking was that the market had gotten ahead of itself and the Chinese economy was setting itself up for a significant slowdown. nbsp; Such pessimism overlooks many fundamental positives in China, particularly on the consumer sentiment side so important for sustaining a recovery. In Augustrsquo;s monthly survey by researchers at CLSA, for example, 91 percent of respondents said they believe business conditions in China will be the same or better in six monthsrsquo; time. Compare that to 42 percent of respondents in December 2008. Itrsquo;s worth pointing out that ...

John Derrick, our director of research, put this together for last weekrsquo;s Investor Alert. After nearly doubling in the first seven months of the year, the domestic Chinese stock market fell more than 20 percent in August. China had led the world out of recession, its aggressive stimulus and other government programs helping to stabilize its domestic economy. With the August stock market drop, the conventional thinking was that the market had gotten ahead of itself and the Chinese economy was setting itself up for a significant slowdown. nbsp; Such pessimism overlooks many fundamental positives in China, particularly on the consumer sentiment side so important for sustaining a recovery. In Augustrsquo;s monthly survey by researchers at CLSA, for example, 91 percent of respondents said they believe business conditions in China will be the same or better in six monthsrsquo; time. Compare that to 42 percent of respondents in December 2008. Itrsquo;s worth pointing out that ...

United States Steel Corp. (X) is restarting its blast furnace at its Hamilton, Ontario plant as steel demand edges higher after a nine-month shutdown.

Demand for U.S. Steel’s flat-rolled steel has improved after bottoming in April and May, this year and is likely to improve going forward. The largest steel producer in the U.S. expects mill-operating rates to exceed 50% in the current quarter, up from 32% in the prior period.

U.S. Steel acquired the Hamilton and Nanticoke plants in Ontario from Canadian peer Stelco Inc. for about $1.1 billion in 2007. The Hamilton operation has an annual production capacity of about 2 million tons. The facility also consists of galvanizing lines and a cold mill. However, the company does not plan to restart these for now.

U.S. Steel had closed the Hamilton blast furnace in November 2008. It suspended the remaining operations at Hamilton and the Nanticoke

...

China is pressing Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE ADR: RTP) hard for a sharp reduction in the prices the company charges for its iron ore. But mining companies like Rio, who have had their bottom lines eviscerated by a slump in commodities prices, may have a hard time acquiescing.

China’s 470 million ton demand for steel is considerably lower than the country’s annual production capacity of 660 million tons, and to that effect, China announced a three-year ban on new mills The New York Times reported.

“Disorderly competition” has pushed up iron ore prices, caused a glut of production capacity and resulted in “serious losses,” said China’s Information Minister Li Yizhong. “My ministry will not approve any expansion-related projects in the iron and steel industry. I would like to call on the whole industry, all iron and steel producers, not to construct any new projects

...

In an effort to enhance the economy, the Brazilian Government recently announced a reduction in Long-Term Interest Rate (TJLP) and Tax on Industrialized Products (IPI) until the end of 2009.

TJLP, which provides a reference for loans by the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) to companies, will drop from 6.5% to 6% a year. Again, IPI will be lowered for 70 items manufactured by the machinery and equipment industry, including wind energy generators, industrial freezers and industrial valves. In 2009, BNDES plans to provide R$120 billion (US$ 61 billion) to enhance economic growth and increase investment in companies.

In order to boost sales in the capital goods industry, the government has reduced the cost of financing purchase of capital goods in the country. The lines of credit to finance capital goods will now see a 5.5% lower interest rate.

Two credit guarantee funds will be established for the

...

The so-called Waxman-Markey bill snaking its way through the greasy halls of Congress looks likes the most expensive thing to hit the economy since the financial crisis began. Even the normally mild-mannered Wall Street Journal called it “one of the most ambitious efforts to re-engineer American social and economic behavior in decades, presenting risks and opportunities for a wide array of businesses from Silicon Valley to the coal fields of the Appalachians.”

First off, the stated objective of cutting carbon emissions by 83% by 2050 will go down in history as outrageous – akin to when Who drummer Keith Moon drove his Lincoln Continental into the pool at the Holiday Inn. I think members of Congress must be smoking the same thing Moon was.

To show you how patently ridiculous such a goal is, I turn to Questar’s CEO – a man with the unfortunate name of Keith Rattie. Questar (NYSE:STR)

...

Gerdau S.A. (GGB) is a leading steel producer in Brazil with operations in South America, North America and Europe. The company is also the largest producer of long steel in the Americas.

We are reiterating out Hold recommendation on Gerdau. The company has been posting good results, and the third quarter 2008 results were excellent. However, the recent decline in steel prices and the international economic slowdown creates a more challenging business environment for the steel industry.

The stock’s valuation seems attractive, even considering lower earnings for 2009. Nevertheless, huge exposure to the U.S. market during a recession is a major concern.

Read the full analyst report on GGB.

“GGB” Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?Zacks Investment Research

Stocks stared into the abyss, again, and finally jumped in, as the financial crisis that has been percolating for weeks finally overwhelmed Wall Street. The Dow posted its largest one day drop since just after the September 11 attacks.

The day started with an orderly sell-off that picked up steam in the second half of the session. No sector escaped the carnage.

The Dow lost 504 points, or 4.42%, to 10917. The Nasdaq Composite Index fared slightly better, giving up 81.36 points, or 3.60%, to 2179. The S&P 500 Index now finds itself below its July lows, shedding 59 points, or 4.71%, to 1192.

There were historic deals, and non-deals, all weekend long, as two of Wall Street’s most revered investment banks threw in the towel. Lehman Brothers (LEH) declared bankruptcy after it couldn't find a partner who would take on its problems. Merrill Lynch (MER) fared

...

Big miners drag down share market THE Australian share market was weaker at noon as losses in the resources sector continued to weigh, although banking stocks recovered. At 12 noon AEST, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 26.5 points to 5114.4 while the broader All Ordinaries shed 30.6 points to 5230.5. The September share price index futures contract was 20 points lower at 5118 on a volume of 20,255 contracts. During the morning, the S&P/ASX200 index had reached a low of 5060.6, close to its 2008 trough of 5039.60 reached on March 17. Macquarie Equities adviser Helen Spencer said banking stocks had recovered from their morning lows as investors took heart from increased confidence that the central bank was unlikely to raise interest rates again this year. “While the market pulling is down a bit because of resources, the financials have had a great result,” Ms Spencer said. “Talk about holding interest rates steady would also be ...