Final Thoughts

Final Thoughts

Written by John Packard


We received a number of responses to our articles on ethics. We didn’t want to beat a dead horse by producing another article this evening, even though there is plenty to write about. For those of you who have not noticed, Kobe Steel in Japan has admitted falsifying data on materials placed in autos, trains and aircraft. The initial reports do not specifically mention steel – more aluminum and other materials. Nonetheless, the reputation of Kobe Steel may be damaged beyond repair. The mill made an ethical decision to deceive its customers and now they, and perhaps the entire Japanese industry, will be harmed by the lack of foresight and actions of a few. It only takes the actions of a few (maybe even just one) to ruin a company’s reputation. It will be interesting to watch what happens to Kobe Steel in the coming weeks and months.

I mentioned this yesterday but I want to put it out there again today, we will be accepting sponsors and exhibitors for our 2018 SMU Steel Summit Conference in the coming days. If a commitment is made now, you have the option of either being billed and paying during calendar year 2017 or waiting to be billed after the first day of the New Year. If you have questions or would like to receive a sponsors/exhibitors package, please send an email to: info@SteelMarketUpdate.com. We anticipate attracting 750 attendees to our 2018 conference.

We will also be going out to take orders for 2018 advertisement space in our newsletter and on our website. The top banner ad has been selling out each of the last two years well before the beginning of the New Year, so if you have interest please send an email to info@SteelMarketUpdate.com.

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

John Packard, Publisher

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Final thoughts

Last week was a newsy one for the US sheet market. Nucor’s announcement that it would publish a weekly HR spot price was the talk of the town – whether that was in chatter among colleagues, at the Boy Scouts of America Metals Industry dinner, or in SMU’s latest market survey. Some think that it could Nucor's spot HR price could bring stability to notoriously volatile US sheet prices, according to SMU's latest steel market survey. Others think it’s too early to gauge its impact. And still others said they were leery of any attempt by producers to control prices.