Final Thoughts

December 15, 2017

Happy Holidays to everyone. I know I have told you on a number of occasions that I am now no longer at my desk, but rather slowly moving out to sea for an extended period of rest. Well, as much rest as a workaholic can possibly get. The rest of the SMU team is busy at work and we should not miss a beat.

We will publish as normal this week (Tuesday evening and Thursday evening) with Thursday’s issue being the last one of the year. Steel Market Update will close our offices the week of Dec. 24 and will not reopen until Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2018. If you need to reach someone at SMU, the best way is to send an email to info@SteelMarketUpdate.com or to contact our office at 772-932-7538 or 706-216-2140.

There are rumors that the domestic mills may try to press their luck and go for another price increase before the end of the calendar year. A steel buyer who works with Steel Dynamics reported seeing two $30 per ton price increases over the past 10 days. Whether this was an effort to move prices up to where they should have been or because their order book is stronger than normal, we don’t know for sure right now. Steel buyers should be aware of the potential for more price moves as we slip into the New Year.

Our last flat rolled steel market trends analysis (survey) will begin at 8 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 18. If you receive an “invitation to participate” from SMU, please take a moment to open the email and click on the “Start Here” button. If you are not receiving an invitation, check your SPAM folder for 8 a.m. (or very close to that time) to see if it is there. If you have never received an invitation, please contact Brett@SteelMarketUpdate.com . As long as you are an active buyer or seller (or executive management) of a manufacturing company, flat rolled or plate service center, steel mill, trading company or toll processor, you are eligible to participate. Currently, we have 640 individuals registered to participate and we are always looking for more participants. You can also call Brett Linton if you would like information on how to “white list” the inbound email that is used to deliver the invitations. He can be reached at 706-216-2140. If you would like to have your name removed or applied to someone else in your company, please contact Brett.

Our offices, with the exception of mine (800-432-3475), are open this week.

As always, your business is truly appreciated by all of us at Steel Market Update.

John Packard, Publisher