Final Thoughts

I had a similar conversation with a mill rep who also told me that their order book was being “controlled” (I was told they don’t like to use the “A” word – as in allocation). Their customers are not necessarily happy about the controlled part of the business but, it helps keep prices strong. This rep also pointed out that no one is going to make a move on price until they understand their cost. The issue is scrap and the desire to get the negotiations done prior to the ISRI (scrap) conference next week in Las Vegas. It hasn’t happened. Dealers are holding out and the mills aren’t yet willing to pay up to the levels being asked. The expectation right now is for scrap to move $30 to as much as $50 per gross ton higher for April delivery than what we saw at the beginning of March.

I got a note today from one of our members who thanked me for helping him find a new product, ZAM, which he ended up using in his product. The value of a subscription to Steel Market Update can sometimes be one article positioned at just the right time.

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John Packard, Publisher