Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Written by Brett Linton
June 12, 2015
Just a quick note to let our Premium level members know that earlier this week we put the latest imports by product, port and country on our website. You can review the data by clicking here.
We received notification from the MSCI that their data will be released on Monday of next week. We will have our Apparent Excess analysis probably on Tuesday. We anticipate that our forecast will be off (we had projected flat rolled shipments at 113,000 tons per day which is probably high).
We will conduct our next flat rolled steel market survey beginning on Monday. When in New York City earlier this week for the Steel Success Strategies meeting one of our Premium customers told me that the survey data was exceptional and we were the only place where that particular client could see something that drills down to the level of active buyers and sellers of steel – the real decision makers.
If you have opinions about our products (good or bad) please let us know.
Survey results should be posted on our website on Friday afternoon of next week.
As always your business is truly appreciated by all of us here at Steel Market Update.
John Packard, Publisher
Brett Linton
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Final Thoughts
We’ve talked about tariffs ad nauseam for much of the year. And I’m afraid this topic isn’t going away anytime soon. There’s a feeling that the tariff “can” will just be kicked down the road again and again, and again.
Final Thoughts
Can technology help with pig iron and DRI/HBI tariffs?
Final Thoughts
Tariff-related noise aside, there is one basic factor keeping buyers on the sidelines. Despite recent declines, HR prices remain at historically high levels. And there is no obvious support to keep them there.
Final Thoughts
United Airlines raised eyebrows earlier this month when it provided two forecasts for 2025 – one assuming a relatively stable economy and another assuming a recession. The reason? Uncertainty around the impact of President Trump’s policy shocks on the broader economy. And it sometimes feels like we’re seeing a battle between those two narratives (stable vs recession) play out within in the pages of this newsletter.
Final Thoughts
Despite some scary headlines lately (especially about Trump potentially firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell) this is not October 2008 (financial crisis) or March 2020 (onset of the pandemic). But it sure seems like we’ve taken a relatively strong economy and poured a thick sauce of uncertainty over it.