Final Thoughts

I was talking to the CEO of a large service center late last week, and the discussion turned to how the remaining baby boomers may be holding back the industry from total acceptance of new technology and new ways of conducting business. I am sure there is a thread of truth to that. We baby boomers are struggling during this pandemic with not being able to get face to face with our customers/suppliers, and we are all zoomed out.

I was asked what I liked better – the live conference experience or the virtual experience we have been building over the past 5-6 months?

As a baby boomer, the answer is not easy. I am going to miss not being able to physically shake the hands and chat face to face with old and new friends alike. This is the 10th anniversary for the SMU Steel Summit Conference, and I will miss the sea of faces across the room, the din in the dining area and exhibition area, the throngs of people at the bars at the hotels. However, the virtual platform we have been working on will probably be an even better experience as the chance attendees will miss touching base with someone is dramatically diminished on a virtual platform.

The throngs of people will still be there. As of late last week, we had pushed through 500 registrations and are well on our way to 600. Since executives are just now looking at their calendars for late August, we expect the numbers to rise in the coming days and weeks. I am still hopeful of attracting more than 800 executives to this year’s event.

This will be the first time in 10 years where I will be able to view the complete program. In a virtual platform, the live events are recorded and then become available “on-demand.” Now you can network, hold your meetings, and still see every speaker, visit every exhibition booth, check out every attendee.

A virtual platform allows us the opportunity to provide extra content. This is done with an “on-demand” function. So, for example, we will have a short Steel 101 training video available for attendees. This video will not be part of the regular program, but it will be available on demand. There will be other videos from SMU, CRU and potentially others, which will also be available on an on-demand basis within our platform.

Because people do not have to travel, we are able to offer each qualified NexGen Leadership nominee a free ticket to this year’s conference. This is a double bonus for your company: 1) you get to recognize one (or more) of your key young talented employees, and 2) they get exposed to our exceptional program and networking with others within the industry. To learn about nominating someone, please go to: www.smusteelsummit.com and click on the 2020 Award tab at the top of the page.

We will demonstrate many of the new ways one can produce and function within a virtual platform for those attending this Wednesday’s SMU Community Chat webinar at 11 a.m. ET. To register, click on this link or go to www.SteelMarketUpdate.com/blog/smu-community-chat-webinars

If you want more information about speakers, agenda, cost, NexGen Leadership Award and how to register, please go to www.smusteelsummit.com or click here.

According to many of the steel buyers (and at least one integrated steel mill), one of the key factors for steel prices either rising or falling will be ferrous scrap pricing come August. We heard from one of the integrated mills on Friday who pointed out that new orders for ferrous scrap suggest prices are ticking higher as we head into August. SMU asked CRU scrap specialist Ryan McKinley what he was seeing in the scrap markets for August and he reported:

“We have seen scrap prices in the export market rising a bit and this often lends support to the domestic market. While this may help support obsolete grade prices in August, demand for scrap is still only a little stronger than it has been in the last 30-60 days relatively speaking (depending on region).  The small increase in the export market may very well wind up keeping obsolete grade prices unchanged as opposed to ticking lower. Prime grades, on the other hand, are almost certainly going to move lower m/m amid continued generation from manufacturers and their relatively high price spread to obsolete grades.

“The primary questions for whether or not obsolete grade prices fall next month is how much of that material is pushed to the East Coast for export and how much inbound flows have been affected by a decrease in scale prices. Yes, demand has not weakened m/m overall for scrap, but there is a chance that supply outpaces this and prices come off a bit in August.”

The SMU Price Momentum Indicators on flat rolled are Neutral as we wait for the market to determine if spot prices will rise from here. Right now, there seems to be two distinct camps, with integrated mills on one side of the ledger and EAF mills on the other.

If you have questions about renewal, upgrades to your existing account, or opening a new account, please reach out to Paige@SteelMarketUpdate.com or call 724-720-1012.

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

John Packard, President & CEO