Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
June 30, 2022
I’m not gone yet… 61 days to go.
First, thank you for all the kind phone calls, notes, posts on LinkedIn, Facebook, etc., regarding the announcement of my upcoming retirement at the end of August. I truly appreciate the comments made, and I look forward to seeing many of you at the 2022 SMU Steel Summit Conference in Atlanta.
Between now and the end of August, I intend to pen several articles on factors affecting the steel industry and ultimately steel prices. We are living in dynamic times for the industry as steel mills make moves to modernize, decarbonize, and adjust their focus on what the industry will look like in the years to come.
I also intend on writing a few articles about the path I took that led me and Steel Market Update to this point.
Steel Market Update is well-positioned to continue to be a solid source of information, education, and a benchmark for the industry without me leading the charge. SMU will continue to evolve to properly cover an industry that is evolving as well. I encourage you to engage with Michael Cowden, Brett Linton, David Schollaert, Laura Miller, and the soon-to-be-named new team member who will be joining SMU in July. You will be able to meet them at this year’s SMU Steel Summit Conference on August 22-24. I will be at the conference as well as I take my last bow and past the baton to my successor.
Speaking of the conference, we have passed through 800 registered executives heading toward 900 and ultimately well over a thousand. Over the past few days, we have added the following companies (those with an * means there is more than one individual registered from that company): ADM Investor Services, Berg Steel Pipe Corp.*, Borusan Mannesmann Pipe US Inc.*, Helmer Scientific, Jemison Metals*, JSW Steel USA, Metal Master*, Misetal*, P&S Transportation Inc., Schaeffler Group USA Inc., Tubular USA, Valmont, Vest Inc., Wastequip LLC, Welser Profile Austria GmbH*, PTC Alliance. You can view a full list of attending companies by clicking here. You can register for the conference by clicking here.
Nominations for the SMU NexGen Leadership Award will soon close. We have room for more nominations, and I highly encourage you to recognize your high achievers who are 35 or younger by nominating them for this prestigious industry award. You can learn more about the award, how to make a nomination (self-nominations are also accepted), an example of what a well-received nomination looks like, discounts nominees will get to attend this year’s conference, what the winner will receive, and more information about the award by clicking here.
SMU has started a youth-focused organization called the NEXGEN Metals Community. This is a free organization whose focus is on attracting and keeping young people in the metals industries. The organization is free and will host its first in-person meeting during the SMU Steel Summit Conference in Atlanta. You do not have to be a registered attendee of the conference to attend NEXGEN Metals Community events. You can learn more about the organization, its benefits, and how to join by clicking here.
For those of you located in the United States please enjoy the long 4th of July holiday weekend.
As always, your business is truly appreciated by all of us associated with Steel Market Update.
John Packard, Founder
John Packard
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Final thoughts
We got a little flack for adjusting our sheet momentum indicators to neutral last week. To be clear, we didn’t adjust them to lower. Part of the reason we moved them to neutral was because there are some unusual cross-currents in the current market. On the news side, you could make a case that there should nowhere to go but up.
Final thoughts
I think all of us know that sometimes courtships go wrong. A misplaced word or deed and soon things can go sideways, and not in the prices sense. Such could be the case with Japanese steelmaker Nippon Steel’s play for U.S. Steel.
Final thoughts
We’re starting to see some impacts of the big trade case filed last week against imports of coated flat-rolled steel from 10 nations. Namely, we’ve heard that a range of traders have stopped offering material from Vietnam. An alleged dumping margin of nearly 160% will do that. Especially amid chatter of critical circumstances.
Final thoughts
The phrase “political football” has been tossed around a lot lately. (Pun probably intended.) For the humble journalists at SMU who thought the week following Steel Summit would prove a quiet one… the news cycle had other ideas
Final thoughts
Sheet prices didn’t roar back after Labor Day. But steel market news sure came out of the gate strong (or maybe chaotically is the better way to put it). First, the nearly $15-billion proposed sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel exploded into the news. And when I say exploded, I mean that all sides seem to be escalating things now.