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The net loss of $267 million, or $1.86 a share, compares with net income of $290 million, or $2.50, a year earlier, Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel said today in a statement. Sales dropped 25 percent to $3.35 billion. Competitor Nucor Corp. today reported a fourth-quarter profit and 2009 sales that moved it ahead of U.S. Steel’s revenue.

Chief Executive Officer John Surma in October said the company would report an operating loss in the fourth quarter due to low production rates and costs to maintain idled facilities. The U.S. steel industry ran at an average 51 percent of capacity last year as prices dropped to a five-year low in June. A rebound in steel prices during the third quarter caused by reduced output and inventories stalled in the fourth quarter.

“Steel prices, at least in the near term, could be coming down,” Sal Tharani, a New York-based analyst at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., wrote in a Jan. 22 report. “This could pose a headwind for steel stocks.”

U.S. Steel fell $4.42, or 7.9 percent, to $51.81 at 9:41 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange trading. The shares rose 48 percent last year.

Excluding certain one-time items, the loss was $1.84 a share. U.S. Steel was projected to report a fourth-quarter loss excluding some items of $1.51 a share, the average estimate of 13 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Sales were projected to fall to $3.07 billion, from $4.5 billion last year.

“We expect to report an overall first quarter 2010 operating loss in line with the fourth quarter 2009 as gradually improving business conditions are not yet fully reflected in our operating results,” Surma said in the statement.

Belgium’s CMI in talks with cos for steel JV

The Indian steel industry could likely see some more action in the coming days. Belgium’s CMI Group is in negotiations with leading Indian private steel producers such as Essar Steel and Bhushan Steel to set up specialised steelmaking facilities to meet growing demand for high-value products for the auto industry.

According to people familiar with the development, if completed, the move would be in line with similar technical collaborations. Large Indian steel companies such as Tata Steel and JSW Steel have recently signed with Nippon Steel and JFE, respectively, for making high-grade auto steel.

Japanese steelmakers have been quick in making their presence felt in India, which is considered to be the world’s second-fastest growing steel market after China. The e2.57 billion (about Rs 17,500 crore) CMI Group, which is credited with building the world’s first steam locomotive, is also the world’s largest supplier of equipment for a continuous annealing line, a specialised steelmaking facility that is used for making products for the auto industry.

CMI or Cockerill Maintenance & Ingenierie, has been keen on its India plans and in 2008, acquired two Mumbai-based companies, Flat Products and NT Strips and Automation.

Essar Steel and Bhushan Steel declined to comment on the issue. The Delhi-based Bhushan Steel has been open to technical and financial collaborations and had recently formed a joint venture with Japan’s Sumitomo Metals to build a 6 million tonne steel plant in West Bengal. “A collaboration to build a greenfield steel plant is different from having a technical collaboration for a specialised manufacturing line with equipment suppliers,” said a Bhushan Steel official who declined to comment specifically on any deal with CMI.

According to people connected with the industry, it typically costs about Rs 240-300 crore for building a 300,000-400,000 tonne continuous annealing line. Since size is vital in such a high-value sector that usually works on long-term supply contracts with carmakers, steel companies usually build a 500,000-tonne line within their existing units to have a smooth supply to car makers.

The move to forge collaborations for manufacturing auto steel products comes at a time when global majors such as Toyota and Honda, who have been building a robust presence in the Indian market, want to localise steel sourcing to cut costs.

India imports almost all the steel that is used to make cars. The country buys about 4-5 million tonnes of all categories of steel annually from global steel makers, of which almost three-fourths is meant for the auto industry.

Although Indian steelmakers have succeeded in making low-cost steel — Tata Steel is the world’s second lowest cost producer — the country is yet to make high-grade steel for the auto industry, especially the sort of steel that goes into car panels which account for almost 50% of the total quantity of steel that is used in a car.

Auto-grade steel is also priced at about 20-40% higher than the base-grade steel, popularly called hot rolled coil steel. Prices in the Indian steel market have been firm and were revised upwards thrice in three months. The average selling price of hot rolled coil is currently at about Rs 32,000 per tonne.

“The car makers will have to buy locally as the cost of importing steel for making cars would not be viable anymore,” said people familiar with the development. Also, with steel consuming markets shifting to Southeast-Asia, China and India, it makes economic sense to have manufacturing locations closer to the markets. Demand for steel in India is growing at 8-9%, compared with China, which is the fastest, at 12%.

Japan’s Nippon Steel, which has had a technical collaboration with Tata Steel since 2000, last week formed the joint-venture with the Indian steelmaker to make products for cars. The Indian auto industry grew at its fastest pace in 2009, compared to a sharp decline in Japan.

Then there is also demand from other consumer durables and sectors such as construction and infrastructure. India’s $1.2 trillion economy is forecast to expand 6.9% in the current fiscal year that ends in March, while countries in Europe are growing at only 2-3%.

Bajaj Steel Q3 net profit flat at INR 6 crores

Bajaj Steel Industries Limited has announced the financial results for the quarter ended on December 31st 2009. The Net Sales was at INR 84.94 crores for quarter ended on December 31st 2009 against INR 66.40 crores for the quarter ended on December 31st 2008.

The Net Profit was at INR 5.84 crores for the quarter ended on December 31st 2009 against INR 5.85 crores for the quarter ended on December 31st 2008.

The Net Sales was at INR 169.14 crores for 9 months ended on December 31st 2009 against INR 195.60 crores for the 9 months ended on December 31st 2008.

The Net Profit was at INR 10.60 crores for 9 months ended on December 31st 2009 against INR 12.88 crores for 9 months ended on December 31st 2008.

Listed steel, nonferrous metal firms forecast H1 Losses

In statements filed with the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, two steelmakers and a nonferrous metal producer forecast first-half losses despite improved second-quarter performances.

SGIS Songshan Co. Ltd. estimated a first half net loss of 210 million yuan due to weak domestic and overseas demand, lower prices and industry-wide overproduction.

Shanxi Taigang Stainless Steel Co. projected up to a 700 million yuan loss in the first half.

Yunnan Tin Co. predicted a first half loss of up to 43 million yuan.

US warship built with "Twin Towers" steel sailing to New York

Sent off by exciting crowds along the Mississippi River, the USS New York, an amphibious assault vessel, left New Orleans for its trip to New York on Tuesday.

After it is officially commissioned in early November, the Navy warship will be stationed at the Naval base in Norfolk, Virginia.

The 208-meter-long ship can carry up to 800 Marines, and launch cargo and troop transport ships and launch helicopters from its deck. It costs 1.2 billion dollars to build.

The warship was built at the Northrup Grumman's Shipyard just outside of New Orleans.

The USS New York is the first of three ships to hit the seas that is and will be named after locations that were involved with the 9/11 attacks. Still under construction are the Somerset (Pennsylvania County) and the Arlington (Pentagon).

Two hijacked jetliners crashed into the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, destroying the twin towers and killing nearly 2,800 people. In September 2002, the US Defense Department announced the selection of New York as the ship's name, honoring the city and state and those who died in the attacks.

Positive steel price outlook

Workers move steel pipes at a steel market in South China’s Hainan Province. China’s composite index for steel prices soared from 95.01 to 129.5 over the past three weeks. Prices are expected to continue to rise in June, a typically high season in terms of steel demand. Photo: Image China

China steel mills back in black for 2nd month

The 71 largest steel companies in China booked aggregate profit of 3.6 billion yuan in June as demand and prices rebounded, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on July 29.

The 71 mills reported total profit of 1.3 billion yuan in May, ending a seven-month string of losses, according to the China Iron & Steel Industry Association.

Steel demand began to revive at the beginning of the year as the central government's 4-trillion-yuan stimulus package buoyed fixed-asset investment and consumption.

Blood on the hands at a bleeding steel mill

On July 24, Chen rose early and went to Tonggang with several colleagues. His mission was to communicate with mill workers about the restructuring plan. Talks held over the previous two days had gone nowhere.

As Chen arrived, he was greeted by a banner hung by a retired worker in front of the Tonggang office building. It said, "Jianlong, Get Out of Tonggang."

Chen started a morning meeting mid-level managers and workers. Meanwhile, Tonghua workers started blocking a railway to prevent supplies from reaching the mill, forcing the company to suspend production for several hours.

Around noon, the man who hung the banner quarreled with others who wanted it down. The tension spread to other protesters, who started moving toward the building where Chen was holding meetings.

Throughout the day, some people were handing out ice-cream, cigarettes and bottled mineral water to protesters, and the factory's cafeteria was open for lunch, without charge.

An initial investigation revealed that the attack came in two stages. The first occurred at about 11 a.m., after which Chen left the scene under protection of security staff. He hid in an office building at the coke plant, and the security staff locked him behind two iron doors. But more than 200 people attacked the building. At 4:38 p.m., sources said, someone found Chen hiding in the office and the doors were forced open.

According to a report filed by a Jilin official at the scene, the attackers included "people who were not former or current Tonggang workers." Some witnesses told Caijing that many people who did not wear company uniforms were among the rioters attacking Chen. They may have been tied to the area's "gray business" iron and steel operations.

Police were informed that Chen was in danger, but they were unable to rescue him. Rioters blocked police, ambulances and government officials who tried to reach the victim.

Inside the office building, according to a source, someone cried out, "Chen must die." And between 6 and 7 p.m., the deed was done. An autopsy determined that he suffered a skull fracture and brain hemorrhage.

Chen's body was cremated seven days after his death. A funeral was held in his hometown in Hebei, attended by about 200 mourners including his widow and their twins, a daughter and son.

Angry, voiceless workers halt steel reform

The steel cases merely represented the most visible tip of the iceberg in which trade unions are blamed for serving no purpose between employees and employers. The Global Times reported on July 24 the suicide of Sun Danyong, an employee of Foxconn Technology Group, who was held responsible for misplacing a prototype after a sample Apple iPhone had gone missing. In this case trade union involvement was conspicuous by its absence.

Then there was the case of Zhang Haichao, forced to have his chest opened by surgeons to prove he had a deadly lung disease after his employer refused to provide a certificate showing he had been working in a polluted environment. Not one mention of a trade union has appeared in any media report.

To Xie Yi, a trade union is much more like a charity than the role outlined by law.

“In my opinion, the trade union appears only before holidays or when someone suffered a misfortune. It seems like the trade union is only responsible for expressing sympathy, greetings and spreading labor protection articles,” the 34-year-old Beijing State company employee told the Global Times.

Zhou Yongkun, a professor of Suzhou University in Jiangsu Province, explained in his blog why the trade union under the current economic system is incapable of solving disputes.

“Under the traditional Chinese centrally planned economic system, where the government authority was combined with company management, the right of freedom of association with others was easily considered as an anti-government organization as the trade union was capable of solving disputes between employers and employees,” he said.

“However, under the market economy system, companies are independent from the government in dealing with their management issues and the trade union has transformed into a tool for shareholders.

“The trade union has become incorporated with management, so it will act in accordance with shareholders’ interests. Since it carries the order of shareholders, when incidents happen like this, its only choice is to keep silent.”

Safety valve

As China experiences a global economic pinch, society urgently needs more rational ways for workers to make their voices heard.

The steel case prompted Zhou to make two far-reaching conclusions:
“First, the appeal raised by those workers was justified. That’s why it was finally accepted by the government.

“Second, the trade union in this factory was useless. Before the enforcement of the decision, there was no debate or hearings, which all boils down to one problem: There is no rational channel of dialogue between the high and low level,” he wrote in his blog.

Irrational measures of expression are increasing tension and disharmony within society. If the workers in Tonghua steel plant had peacefully exercised their right to freedom of association with others and talked with management, Chen would still be alive and social order would not be threatened, according to Zhou.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states everyone should enjoy the right to freedom of association with others, including the right to form and join trade unions for protection of their interests.

From this perspective, he argued, freedom of association would be a rational response to resolving such disputes while also maintaining a harmonious social order.

The All-China Federation of Trade Unions on August 14 responded to the issue by issuing a notification requiring unions in restructuring enterprises increase transparency and make full play of the functions of the workers’ representative conferences

Hebei Iron & Steel June profit surges 200%

Hebei Iron & Steel Group's June profit surged nearly 200 percent to 273.7 million yuan as an economic recovery spurred demand.

China's steel products price index climbed to 101.98 points at the end of June, up about 20 percent from April's trough, as the government's huge infrastructure-focused stimulus package boosted demand.

China's 72 major steel companies booked aggregate profit of 1.3 billion yuan in May, breaking a seven-month string of losses, after a jump in demand and prices.

Details of steel executive's death emerge

The beating death of a steel company executive during a riot at state-owned Tonghua Iron & Steel Co. Ltd. on July 24 in Jilin Province has been widely blamed on workers protesting a company restructuring.

Now, interviews by Caijing have shed more light on the death of Tonghua's general manager, Chen Guojun, and events that led to the tragedy.

Chen, 39, had been deputy general manager before rising to general manager the day he died, taking over the post from Sun Yubin, a veteran at Tonghua's parent, Tonghua Iron & Steel Group.
Chen had little influence over company operations as well as little reason for any contact -- or friction -- with most mill workers. He was not well known even among his direct colleagues.

A company executive called Chen decent and industrious. He also denied rumors that the victim had threatened massive layoffs at the steel mill as part of an ongoing restructuring.

During the riot, according to executives and workers interviewed by Caijing, Tonghua workers blocked a railway to prevent supplies from reaching the mill, forcing the company to suspend production for several hours. They then went to a coke plant and surrounded an office where Chen was hiding before attacking him.

An initial investigation revealed that the attack came in two stages. The first occurred at about 11 a.m., after which Chen left the scene under protection of security staff. He hid in an office building at the coke plant, and the security staff locked him behind two iron doors.

But then more than 200 people attacked the building. At 4:38 p.m., sources said, someone found Chen hiding in the office and the doors were forced open.

Police were informed that Chen was in danger, but they were unable to rescue him. Rioters blocked police, ambulances and government officials who tried to reach Chen before he died.

Inside the office building, according to a source, someone cried out "Chen must die." An autopsy showed Chen suffered a skull fracture and brain hemorrhage.
There is no evidence Chen threatened steelworkers with mass layoffs. But apparently protesters heard rumors that the steelmaker Jianlong, a Beijing-based private company planning to acquire Tonghua, was training a new, 200-member management team, and that tens of thousands of employees would be laid off. Another rumor alleged that Jianlong would move the company to the city of Jilin.

An agreement between Jilin's provincial State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) and Jianlong includes no mention of pay cuts or layoffs after a restructuring. It does say, however, that workers would receive higher pay based on company profits.

But this agreement document was not seen by most Tonghua workers, apparently leaving room for rumor mongering.

Some witnesses told Caijing that many people who wore no company uniforms were among the rioters attacking Chen. They may have been tied to "gray business" iron and steel operations in the area, some of which are near the steelmaker.

Tonghua's business hit a bump last year as China's steel industry posted losses, triggering disputes about the company's restructuring plan and increasing labor-management friction. In fact, before Jianlong became a Tonghua shareholder, discontent had been rising among workers because executives had hired relatives.

Govt to curb oversupply of steel

The government will curb steel output on the grounds of weak demand and overproduction, reported the 21st Century Business Herald yesterday.

The newspaper stated that the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) issued an urgent notification to the steel industry last week, calling for a curb in overproduction. MIIT was also reported as asking for cooperation from commercial banks to cut or stop loans to overproducing steelmakers.

“Having received the notification, China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) is coordinating with MIIT and the National Reform and Development Commission to do market research,” said Shan Shanghua, secretary of CISA.

According to the report, MIIT stated that only 4.7 billion tons of steel is needed this year. Overcapacity against domestic and overseas demand stands at 25 to 30 percent.

The CISA is in the process of setting production limits for steel producers on products such as hot rolled plate and cold rolled sheet, according to Shan.

Steel prices have been on the rise since April. Earlier this month, CISA's steel price index reached 148.51, up 4.36 percent from the end of March. The wire rod price index hit 155.57 and steel bar price index 148.19, up 6.64 and 3.24 percent respectively over the same period.

Steel futures on the Shanghai exchange have also risen. The price for September steel bar contracts climbed from 3,549 ($520.38) in March to an average close of 3,645 yuan ($534.46) this month and settled at 3,639 yuan ($533.58) yesterday.

The rebounding signals fueled an impulse expansion in production. MIIT stated that such blind expansion could lead to a severe oversupply.

“The industry has not truly recovered,” said Shan. He explained that the real estate and machinery industries have not been revived and that it would be dangerous to expand production under such circumstances.

Customs data revealed that the country only managed to export 1.41 million tons last month, down 70.5 percent year on year.

Record steel output

Boosted by the government's economic stimulus package, both crude steel output and consumption in China are expected to hit a record high in 2009, said Qi Xiangdong, deputy secretary-general of the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA), at a recent forum in Shanghai.

The CISA estimated both the country's production volume and apparent consumption of crude steel would exceed 565 million tons this year, while the actual consumption might total more than 500 million tons.

Daily crude steel output topped 1.66 million tons in October, up 42.4 percent year on year, which means annual production may reach 600 million tons a year at this rate, Qi said.

July steel exports down 75%

China's steel exports fell 74.9 percent year-on-year to 1.81 million tons in July, while iron ore imports rose 31.8 percent year-on-year to 58.1 million tons.

In the first seven months, steel exports fell 67.3 percent year-on-year to 11.16 million tons, while iron ore imports increased 24.1 percent to 355.25 million tons.

Steel sector may open to foreign investment

The government is considering allowing foreign investors to gain controlling stakes of firms in the iron and steel sectors, but analysts are divided on the possible impact the move would have.

The National Development and Reform Commission prohibited foreign control in 2005 when it released the Iron and Steel Industry Development Policy.

But according to a report Thursday in the China Business News, the commission may be reconsidering the ban.

"A more open policy would promote competition in the country’s steel sector by bringing in new products and more advanced technology," said Wu Jing of ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steelmaker.

ArcelorMittal has acquired 37 percent of Hunan Valin Steel Tube & Wire, an arm of State-owned Valin Iron and Steel Group.

Valin Steel gained new technology by working with Luxembourg-based Arcelor, said Li Xiaowei, chairman of Valin Steel at a forum this July.

Allowing foreign investment will help the ongoing restructuring of the industry, said Fu Yao, a Beijing-based steel analyst. But not all analysts agree.

"If foreign firms are part owners of smaller State-owned mills, it will make it more difficult for domestic enterprises to expand by purchasing them," said Wang Zhe, a steel analyst with CITIC China Securities Research.

"Foreign-invested enterprises won’t be as compliant as they are right now when it comes to mergers and acquisitions," he added.

China opposes US tariffs on steel pipe

China's Ministry of Commerce Thursday voiced its "strong opposition" to a ruling by its US counterpart to impose preliminary duties of up to 31 percent on Chinese steel pipe, accusing the allegedly "unfair subsidies" as a miscalculation by the US.

Experts are worried that the move indicates a surge of protectionism in the United States as President Barack Obama has already been weighing a final decision for another trade dispute over Chinese tires scheduled for September 17.

"The miscalculation on the alleged subsidies has hurt the interests of Chinese companies, and China urges the US to rectify its mistakes in the final ruling," said Yao Jian, spokesman of the Ministry of Commerce, in a press release.

Following an investigation into a case appealed in April by American producers, led by the U.S. Steel Corp, the US Commerce Department claims that China-made steel pipe was backed by unfair subsidies, and decided to impose preliminary duties ranging from 10.90 percent to 30.69 percent on steel pipe used to transport oil.

The department is scheduled to carry out arbitration on December 5. After that, the International Trade Center will decide the final duties on China. It is considered to be one of the biggest to move through the US trade-litigation system in recent years.

China's Ministry of Commerce refuted the "unfair subsidies," saying that its US counterpart, regardless of information provided by China, "falsely insisted that China's steel-pipe makers were supported by a government subsidy no matter they purchase raw steel from a private company or a State-owned enterprise."

According to statements by the US Commence Department, the steel pipe to face duties will be that manufactured by Jiangsu Changbao Steel Tube Co, with a 24.33 percent tariff; Tianjin Pipe Group Corp, with 11 percent; Wuxi Seamless Pipe Co, with 25 percent, and Zhejiang Jianli Enterprise Co, with 31 percent. All other producers must pay the trade-weighted average of those figures, or 21 percent.

Wu Xiaofeng, the director of Jiangsu Changbao Steel Tube, told the Global Times that the allegation that the company receives subsidies was groundless.

"In order to get higher-quality steel, we have to pay more money to purchase it from State-owned companies rather than private companies," he said, adding that it is unfair for his company to have such a heavy duty imposed.

"We'll suffer great losses as the third-largest exporter of pipelines to the United States," he said.

Zhou Shijian, a counselor at the All China Lawyers Association, said the preliminary duties go against US trade laws as well as WTO regulations.

"The anti-subsidy tariffs are only applicable to a market economy, but the US has not admitted China's market economy status so far," he said. "Also, an amendment to the US anti-subsidy laws raised in 2007 has not been passed yet."

Zhou said the more than 20 percent duty on China-made pipes is an attempt to evict the whole industry from the US market, which is a blow to China, as the United States is the biggest importer of China-made steel pipe.

"The imposed tariff on steel pipe is essentially trade protectionism, which helps to transfer the US' loss in the economic downturn to other countries," he said.

Steel, a "sunset industry" in the US that cannot compete with the products of other countries, is the industry that has sued the largest number of foreign companies for violating trade rules.

In the first four months of 2009, the US steel industry applied 14 times to investigate counter-dumping and counter-subsidies by the Chinese steel industry, according to the First Financial Daily.

"Every time competitiveness is weak, the US will file anti-dumping lawsuits to protect its own industry," the newspaper quoted an unnamed expert as saying.

US Steel rose 2.4 percent to $44.30 on New York Stock Exchange composite trading and has gained 19 percent this year after imports from China abruptly stopped because of the investigation by the US Commerce Department, according to Bloomberg News.

Trade disputes between China and the US have surged amid the global financial crisis, especially since Barack Obama took office last year. Within a week, he will make the final call on whether to impose up to a 55 percent increase in tariffs on Chinese tire imports.