Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
March 17, 2017
We will begin a new analysis of the flat rolled steel market on Monday with our invitations set to go out at 8 AM on Monday morning. If you receive an invitation please take a moment to click on the link/button contained in the message which will take you to SurveyMonkey.com which hosts our questionnaire. If you would like to be added to our invitee list please send me your name, email address, position and phone number. Please send it to: info@SteelMarketUpdate.com
Registration is open for our next Steel 101: introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshop which will be held in Ontario, California and will include a tour of the California Steel Industries steel mill. More details can be found online and we will have hotel information posted on the site by the middle of this week. The April 11-12th workshop in Toledo, Ohio has been sold out for almost a month and we thank those who have registered for that workshop. We also thank North Star BlueScope for their support by allowing our group to tour their mill as part of our workshop.
I will be in the office all week this week. Next week I will be traveling to Las Vegas to speak to the Steel Framing Industry Association (SFIA). I am looking forward to getting out west and speaking to the SFIA members.
As always your business is truly appreciated by all of us here at Steel Market Update.
John Packard, Publisher
John Packard
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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.