Final Thoughts

August 12, 2015

There are so many dumping suits being filed at the same time that it is difficult to keep track of the various dates as to when actions will be taken either by the US Department of Commerce of the US International Trade Commission (ITC). There are 5 major groups of suits which affect the flat rolled steel industry: corrosion resistant (galvanized/zinc-aluminum or Galvalume), cold rolled, hot rolled, OCTG and structural pipe and tube. In the coming days we will do our best to stay on top of each and to publish “good” dates rather than guessing at when those decisions should be made.

We are in contact with a number of trade attorneys but everyone needs to be aware that they are a little on the busy side a this moment. So far, they have been willing to help us and we appreciate there assistance.

If we don’t have good information we will not publish it – or we will advise that our knowledge or information is not complete and that you need to do more research on your own. We are trying to not take any side but, we will report on how the suits impact manufacturing (could be devastating to the few manufacturing companies left on the West Coast), trading companies, service centers and steel mills. By the nature of their businesses each will have their own unique view. I know this is a touchy subject and that it is politically charged as well as business charged. Do not expect all of our articles to support your position on the subject.

You are all welcome to send me your comments on the subject: John@SteelMarketUpdate.com is the best way to reach me (other than attending our Steel Summit Conference…).

You should all be aware that I represented a domestic steel mill for 10 years, I have represented a number of trading companies for about 5 or 6 years and I was involved with the distribution business for over 20 years. I have mixed feelings and opinions on the subject of free trade due to my own experiences and I understand how complicated (and emotional) this subject can become.

Of course, I highly recommend that if you can get to Atlanta for our conference you will have an opportunity to listen to a number of highly qualified speakers on the subject of free trade and dumping suits. Perhaps more importantly, a number of the speakers (Lewis E Leibowitz and Richard Chriss) are carving out a couple of days out of their schedules to attend our conference and be available to speak to our attendees one-on-one as time permits. Kevin Dempsy of the AISI will also be there but is only available for a few hours on the day of their presentation (afternoon on Day 2).

Registration for the conference can be found on our website or you are welcome to contact our office: 800-432-3475 or, info@SteelMarketUpdate.com.

A quick note about our App and privacy: Steel Market Update NEVER sells or provides information about our clients to others outside of our organization. When you get into the App your information consist of your name, company and title. Someone can send you an email through the App but they do not know your email address unless you response directly from their email message. Your phone number is not included in the App but you can add it if you so chose. You can also block messages from being sent to you and we are asking that our attendees use proper business decorum when contacting others.

As always your business is truly appreciated by all of us here at Steel Market Update.

John Packard, Publisher