Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
June 29, 2016
I happen to be traveling this week and weekend. I am in Maine where in my youth my family used to vacation. Maine is a beautiful state to visit if you have not been here.
I want to take a moment to wish all of my U.S.A. readers a safe and happy 4th of July weekend. We will all have a lot to reflect on with this being an election year and, well the “interesting” candidates we get to choose a president from this year.
To my customers in the rest of the world who are fretting about our election I remind you of the words attributed to Winston Churchill of England (although my research is suggesting that he never actually made this statement), “Winston Churchill once famously observed that Americans will always do the right thing, only after they have tried everything else.”
As always your business is truly appreciated by all of us here at Steel Market Update. We will publish our next issue of SMU on Tuesday, July 5th due to the 4th of July Holiday here in the U.S.A.
John Packard, Publisher
John Packard
Read more from John PackardLatest in Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
The difference: The spat with Turkey was a big deal for steel. This time, the 50% reciprocal tariff for Brazil – if it goes into effect as threatened on Aug.1 – hits everything from coffee and to pig iron. It seems almost custom-built to inflict as much pain as possible on Brazil.
Final Thoughts
Are we on the cusp of sorting out the tariff situation, or is this merely another round in the bout?
Final Thoughts
I’m not sure how many different ways I can write that it’s been a quiet market ahead of Independence Day. There are variations on that theme. I’ve heard everything from the ominous “eerily quiet” to "getting better" and even the occasional “blissfully unaware” (because I’m enjoying my vacation).
Final Thoughts
What's going to be the next big thing in steel?
Final Thoughts
Based on the amount of ‘out of office’ replies we’ve been receiving and the results of this week’s steel buyers’ survey, those pesky summer doldrums have arrived for the steel industry.