Final Thoughts

Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
March 18, 2016
A quick reminder that our next Steel 101 workshop which will be held just outside of Toledo, Ohio on May 17-18th of this year, is about half full. We already have an excellent group of manufacturing companies, service centers and steel mills attending. On the afternoon of the first day we will tour the North Star Bluescope steel mill and that evening North Star Bluescope along with Steel Market Update is sponsoring our networking cocktail party and dinner at an excellent restaurant named Treo. More information and registration can be found on our website: www.SteelMarketUpdate.com. If you have any questions please send them to: info@SteelMarketUpdate.com or contact our offices at 800-432-3475.
I also want to thank those of you who have already made reservations for our 6th Steel Summit Conference which will be held on August 29-31, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia. For the third time we will host our conference at the Georgia International Convention Center which is located adjacent to the Atlanta International Airport. No need for expensive cabs rides or car rental. From the airport you just take the SkyTrain directly to the Marriott Gateway Hotel and the GICC (1st Stop). Allow for 5 minutes (and zero dollars) from the airport to the convention center and hotel. Details about our program and confirmed speakers to date, as well as the company’s who attended last year are on our website.
A special thanks to the sponsors who have already signed up for this year: Pacesetter Steel, Big River Steel, Steel Dynamics, Alliance Steel, Kenwal and Magic Coil Products. We still have a few remaining sponsorship spots available and details can be found on our website or contact our office: info@SteelMarketUpdate.com.
Thank you again for your business as it is truly appreciated by all of us here at Steel Market Update.
John Packard, Publisher

John Packard
Read more from John PackardLatest in Final Thoughts

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.

Final Thoughts
I put some of our survey data through ChatGpt, with interesting results.

Final Thoughts
Nearly 50% of respondents to our latest survey thought hot-rolled coil prices have already peaked. And where will those prices be two months from now? Responses were decidedly split on that question.