Final Thoughts

Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
April 3, 2017
Congratulations to AK Steel which will cut the ribbon on their new Research and Innovation facility at the end of this week. It is truly enjoyable to see a domestic mill investing in the future of the industry. The new 135,000 square foot, $36 million dollar facility is located in the Renaissance District of Middletown, Ohio which is 14 miles from the company’s headquarters in West Chester, Ohio.
Steel Market Update is looking for “feel good” stories about the industry. If you or your company has something interesting, enlightening or challenging to say please send it to: John@SteelMarketUpdate.com.
Next week we will conduct of Steel 101 workshop in Toledo, Ohio. Over the past couple of years the reputation of our workshop has grown to the point where we have a waiting list for most workshops just a few weeks after we put registration online. Our next workshop is going to be on the West Coast where we have not been for awhile and we recommend registering as soon as possible just to be safe. You can do so on our website: www.SteelMarketUpdate.com or you can contact our offices: 772-932-7538 or 706-216-2140.
I spoke to the Steel Framing Industry Association and heard back from the associations director how pleased they were with the quality of the information I shared with their group. If your company or association has an interest in having me speak to your group I can be reached at: John@SteelMarketUpdate.com or at 800-432-3475. I try to limit the number of times that I speak on a yearly basis due to all of the other commitments I have – but, I do like getting out on occasion and meeting new groups and new people.
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
As Wolfe Research’s Timna Tanner put it in her opening talk at Tampa on Monday afternoon, we’re living in a world of “Trumplications” now. That probably means – at least in the short term – higher scrap costs, lower imports from countries hit with or threated tariffs, and higher steel prices. SMU data reflects that. Scrap went up in January. More than 75% of the respondents to our more recent survey expect scrap to go up again February, maybe by a lot. Lead times, meanwhile, have been ticking upward this month. It started with hot-rolled coil and plate earlier this month. Now we’re seeing coated lead times extending too.

Final Thoughts
We joked in our last Final Thoughts that Wiley trade attorney Tim Brightbill – one of the nation’s leading experts on trade law and policy – would probably be revising his presentation on Trump, trade policy, and tariffs for the Tampa Steel Conference. He did. And even after those last-minute revisions, he actually got trumped […]

Final Thoughts
The whole SMU team is packing up our laptops and our SMU polos/cardigans, loading up the PowerPoint slides, and preparing to make the trek down to Florida for the Tampa Steel Conference. There will be plenty to talk about!

Final Thoughts
From one group of folks, I’ve heard that Trump might not wait until Feb. 1 – the date he threatened on to place tariffs on China, Canada, and Mexico. They say he could act as soon as Friday. And then there are those who don’t think anything will happen before April 1. That’s the deadline for Commerce, Treasury, and USTR to submit key reports on “America First Trade Policy” to President Trump.

Final Thoughts
Trump made a clarification in a speech on Monday. Previously, he had declared the word “tariff” the most beautiful word in the dictionary. No longer.