Steel spurt keyed to defense

World events have had little direct effect on steel prospects, and the brief spurt of steel stock prices in early January came at a time when orders for steel were lagging. Iron Age magazine reports. Prices in steel markets themselves were softer than usual.

The stock market flurry was apparently due to the association of steel with defense spending.With the Carter administration leaning toward a stronger military position, there has been general investment interest in defense-related industries.

In 1978, however, direct steel shipments to the military came to only 207,000 tons, or 0.2 percent of total steel volume.