the price of steel

1962 · Mar 11, 2005

i went to my local steel supplier today to stock up for some up comming projects. i heard it went up in price, but WOW!!!my personal project stock was gettin kinda sparse, so i figured i would replenish it some to keep me busy for awhile. i got just what i needed for a couple projects, but no stockpiling this time. i priced a 24' length of square tubing 1"x1"x1/8" it was $51 dollars and change.
i was there in feb. 04 and the same length of tubing was half that. i found the old invoice from feb. 04 in the desk. /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

wroughtn_harv · Mar 11, 2005

And it's going to get worse sorry to say. There's only so much steel in the world and capitalism is taking ahold in places you'd never have thunk. Think of China. Then consider how much more steel is needed even in the cheapest car you can imagine versus that in a bicycle. Then consider the difference in steel needs in a highway for cars and trucks versus that needed in a bike path.

Yup, the cost of progress is hitting home.

jinman · Mar 11, 2005

A few weeks ago, I bought a 5' section of 4"x2"x1/4" wall tubing. It was laying on the steel yard's scrap pile and they didn't even have to make a special cut for me. It was $34. Then I went to TSC and bought two little 3' sections of 1-1/2" u-channel and paid over $9 each. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif It seems TSC adds their "convenience surcharge" to the price of steel. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Neuropel · Mar 11, 2005

Add to that the cost of fuel to deliver the steel, AND the fact that not much steel is made in the US anymore. If anyone has tracked the value of a dollar on the international market, it's easy to see why steel and other goods have gone up so much and why it will go up a LOT more. The US can't even make its own clothes anymore /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
If it werent' for Microsoft exporting Windows all over the world, we'd be in an even deeper trade deficit hole!

daedong · Mar 11, 2005

Here in Oz imported steel from China is much cheaper than steel made in Oz (BHP STEEL) I guess it's the same scenario in the US

1962 · Mar 11, 2005

and to think, not all that long ago this area(pittsburgh,pa) had all the steel mills you would ever want. maybe too many.. but the great leaders of our country thought it best to import steel from third world countries. other industry is also following suit.
even the "drops" various pieces of cut ends and scrap at the steel supplier went up $0.20 from a year ago. heck, ya cant even buy decent black iron pipe anymore. the steel quality is bad and the threads are worse.

Wingnut · Mar 11, 2005

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( .. but the great leaders of our country thought it best to import steel from third world countries ... )</font>

Actually, I think if you do some research you'll find that the price protction that "the great leaders" put in to protect our remaining steel plants from competition in Europe (and Asia) is what has led to the current shortage and highly inflated prices. I'm always astounded by how no one realizes what the price of protectionism really is ... and exactly who pays the tariff (hint: the customer ... meaning ANOTHER nifty tax)

Neuropel · Mar 11, 2005

I too live near the Pittsburgh area, but I've only been here for about 2.5 years. In that time I've talked to numerous people who used to work in the steel mills when it was a thriving business. From what I've been told, the steel owners just found it was cheaper to either sell or move the steel industry abroad. The ones that suffered were the people that worked in the mills. But, there is also the argument that the union wages were so high that the owners could no longer justify keeping the industry here. Why bother paying higher than market value wages for unskilled workers simply because there's a union when you can take your business abroad and keep your profit? Something tells me a LOT of those former steel workers would have given up some salary in exchange for keeping their jobs. Now in Pittsburgh, the regions where the mills used to be located are becoming shopping areas because they're along these beautiful rivers. Shouldn't it tell us something when the largest employers are places like WalMart rather than core industries producing goods? First it was our core goods like steel, and textiles...next it will be our remaining goods in the technology sector as our education diminishes in comparison to other areas of the world. Sorry to rant, but there's a reason why the differences between the "have's" and "have not's" is widening.

1962 · Mar 12, 2005

sure that is one way to look at it.. from the cosumer point of veiw,ie higher prices... but from the manufacturing steel mills, thousands of workers were dumped, not layed off to be called back later, most lost their homes and cars. the steel mills were torn down or remodeled into malls,ect. in the 50's and 60's there was alot of steel mills, not no more. the demand is still there, so why import. seems like the kind of monopoly they play with the oil prices..
just makes one wonder, will we still have the capability to manufacture steel products at the same level as we did back in the ww ll era, should that need arise, or would our supply lines oversea's be terminated..