Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
March 18, 2019
On my way back to the USA following a good meeting with the folks at Ternium in Mexico. More to follow later.
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Companies are beginning to register for our next Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshop, which will be held in Davenport, Iowa, on May 14-15, with the kind cooperation of SSAB Americas. The classroom sessions on the making and marketing of steel products will be complemented by a tour of the SSAB mill. For anyone who has never seen a steel mill in operation, this will be an unforgettable experience.
It’s not too early to begin making plans for the 2019 SMU Steel Summit Conference, to be held Aug. 26-28 in Atlanta. This year the conference will begin with a Price Risk Management Workshop hosted by the CME Group beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 26 in the Marriott hotel next to the Georgia International Convention Center, which will host the rest of the conference. To learn more and to register, go to: www.SteelMarketUpdate.com/Events/Steel-Summit
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John Packard, President & CEO
John Packard
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Final Thoughts
Surprise, surprise. Forget Halloween, the trend this October is all around the unexpected. Known as the “October Surprise,” you never know what is in store for you in the month before a US presidential election. Still, if we pull back the dial back date-wise a little bit, a familiar theme has been added to the mix: kick the can.
Final Thoughts
Another day, another massive gap between the news and market sentiment. On the news side, we’ve got war in the Middle East. The devastation facing western North Carolina coming into tragic focus. And the outcome of the presidential election remains a coin toss, according to current polling.
Final thoughts
There are markets where the headlines and the prices are both crazy. This does not appear to be one of them, at least not yet.
Final thoughts
Washington loomed large in our surveys this week. Two things actually: the upcoming presidential election and the trade case against imported coated products from 10 nations.
Final thoughts
Thanks to everyone who attended our Steel Hedging 101 workshop in Chicago on Wednesday. I learned a lot from StoneX Group’s Spencer Johnson, who instructs the course, and from your good questions. One thing that Spencer said sticks with me as I write this column. Namely, that momentum drives steel prices more than other commodity markets. If you watch steel futures, you’ll see up days and down days. But it’s rare to see the momentum shifting back and forth within any given day.