FEBRUARY 2017 STEEL BULLETIN
February 21, 2017
PRICES
Strip mill prices continue to surge ahead because of Chinese supply drying up as the imposition of import duties starts to bite. European mills are having difficulty keeping up with demand for hot rolled coils and have adopted a take it or leave attitude to pricing. Hollow sections are affected by these increases and we expect further increases over the coming months. Heavy sections have shown significant increases which have now plateaued, but nothing remains static for long. Finally merchant bar, this product group is very reliant on scrap prices and increases in January have now fallen away. What will the next 6 months bring? Forecasting is especially difficult at present with the Trump factor, exchange rate fluctuations and commodities that could be described as tidal, up and down on a regular basis. For up to date information please contact our sales department on 01845 528200.
SUPPLY
The imposition of duties on strip mill steels into Europe from China, Korea, Brazil, Russia and Iran has made a large impact. Hot rolled and galvanised coils are in short supply and difficult to source and spot prices will continue to rise. Heavy sections and hollow sections are readily available but the supply of merchant bar is much tighter with rollings being offered as far forward as June.
TOMRODS LTD
The year of 2016 was a good year. It was our most successful year ever due to the introduction of the night shift which has enabled us to give all our customers probably the best service levels of any steel service centre in the whole of the UK. We do not just deliver the steel on time, we deliver assured quality and we believe in the old fashioned values of honesty and integrity.
Our staff are our biggest asset and we are delighted to record that Melinda Bruce and Mark Cowgill have both clocked up 25 years of continuous service. Mel is the Company Secretary for both Tomrods and All Steels Trading and I am not over estimating Mel’s ability by describing her as the best credit manager in the UK steel industry. Mark has progressed through the ranks to become Works Manager at Tomrods, often saving the business thousands of pounds moving and installing many of our machines. Please take a moment to read an attached feature on Mel and Mark that you will find by simply clicking HERE
I would like to finally thank each and every one of our staff whether office or works for their hard work but I cannot forget all our suppliers and customers who have stuck by us for another year. We look forward to 2017 and to our continuous search for perfection.
Thank you for reading this and if you have any comments about Tomrods Ltd or our website please e-mail the undersigned at johnt@tomrods.co.uk.
John Thompson
MANAGING DIRECTOR