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All's positive for plate: with demand and prices holding steady at a high level, the carbon plate market is paying dividends--and attracting attention from foreign investors.

Article Excerpt
THOUGH PRICES HAVE SOFTENED slightly in the last few months, carbon plate remains one of steel's strongest markets, and should remain so, experts say, as long as the U.S. and world economies stay relatively healthy.

Demand for plate is second only to activity in the red-hot beam market, says Christopher Plummer, managing director of Metal Strategies Inc., West Chester, Pa., noting that the two are related as they both serve the heavy end of steel applications. Apparent consumption of plate, as well as beams, is reaching levels not seen since the early 1970s.

John Anton, director of the steel service at Global Insight, Washington, D.C., contends that plate is perhaps the most consistent and stable of all steel products. Prices of both cut plate and plate in coil have fluctuated little throughout 2007 and remain at about the same level they were two years ago. "While most steel products tend to be going in one direction or another, plate has had no direction but sideways."

According to Metal Strategies, the price of cut plate has averaged $802 per ton this year, and plate in coil $734 per ton, varying by no more than $5 in any given month. This consistency, especially at such a high plateau, is very positive for service centers, which distribute an estimated 60 to 70 percent of all the plate sold in the U.S.

"The markets we serve continue to be strong, and as far as I can see they will remain strong, both in terms of pricing and demand," says Lourenco Goncalves, president and chief executive officer of Metals USA Inc., Houston.

Bill Jones, president of O'Neal Steel Inc., Birmingham, Ala., points to a slight softening in orders, largely due to the effect of the housing bust on production of construction and material-handling equipment. But he agrees with predictions that business will rebound in the third quarter.

"As long as corporate profits remain good and capital spending stays strong, the plate market will do well,"...

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