This is the Commodities, Scrap Metal, Recycling and Economic Report by our BENLEE roll off trailers and gondola trailers/open top trailers, October 17, 2022. Brian Sides reporting while Greg Brown is out of the country.
U.S. raw weekly steel production fell to 1.68MT as the Federal Reserve works to continue to slow the economy.
WTI crude oil price fell to $85.61/b as recession fears took down global forecasts of oil use.
The U.S. weekly oil rig count rose to 610, mostly steady for the past 3+ months. U.S. oil companies are limiting big increases in rigs to maximize profits.
U.S. weekly crude oil production fell to 11.9Mb/d about flat for the past 5.5 months. U.S. oil companies and OPEC are committed to low production to maximize profits.
Scrap steel #1 HMS price fell to $313/GT on slowing U.S. and global demand.
Hot-rolled coil steel price rose slightly to $37.42/cwt, $748/T remaining off highs as U.S. demand is slowing.
Copper price rose to $3.41/lb., but recession fears continue. Prices rose on hopes of Chinese government stimulus.
Aluminum price fell slightly to $1.04/lb. $2,295/mt on recession fears and Alcoa warning about higher energy prices.
U.S. September annual inflation fell to 8.2% the lowest in 7 months. This was as energy rose 19.8% and food rose 11.2%. But core inflation which excludes food and energy, rose to 6.5% the highest since 1982.
U.S. September retail sales were unchanged, so zero increase or decrease vs August. Motor vehicles and gasoline were down as grocery stores were up due to inflation. Note due to 8.2% inflation, this means volume was down about 8%.
U.S. weekly initial jobless claims rose to 228,000, a six-week high. The Federal Reserve wants more people to lose their jobs. This should help lower inflation, so they like this.
U.S. October U of M consumer sentiment index. It rose to 59.8 the highest in 6 months, but the one-year inflation expectation rose to 5.1% and long-term inflation rose to 2.9%. Both are very bad which means interest rates could stay higher for longer.
U.S. September NFIB small business optimism index rose to 92.1 a four-month high. It was easier to hire, but inflation and future business expectations were worse.
Wall Street’s Dow Jones industrial average rose 338 points to 29,635. This was on some good corporate earnings, but inflation fears continue. Also, 63% of economists are predicting a recession, up from 49% in July.
Gondola trailers, Open Top trailers by BENLEE. 45’ 48’, 53’ long or custom sizes. Also, 4’, 5’, 6’, 7’, 8’ walls or custom sizes. High strength Hardox ™ walls and floors. Call us for a quote.