Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
October 6, 2014
On Tuesday (today) Steel Market Update (SMU) adjusted our Price Momentum Indicator from Neutral to Lower. I explain our reasoning in the first article above regarding our price indices. I will do a more detailed explanation as to why we are making a change at this point in time in the coming days.
Today Steel Market Update conducted the first day of our two day workshop on the steel making and rolling process. Part of the program was an exceptional tour of the Steel Dynamics Butler, Indiana mill. Tomorrow (Wednesday) we will concentrate our instruction on qualities and how they are made, how steel is bought and sold (both long and flat products) and we will look at market fundamentals. If you have an interest in joining SMU for our next workshop it will be held in Charleston, South Carolina and we will tour the Nucor Berkeley steel mill. This workshop will be held in the later part of January 2015 (Exact date and hotel information to be announced soon).
We are still hearing that there is pressure on scrap prices – down $20 per gross ton in many markets. We will have more about scrap in Thursday evening’s issue of Steel Market Update.
I want to welcome our newest members (subscribers) as we have added a number of new Premium and Executive level members over the past few days. I want to not only welcome you but I want to let you know that we are hear to assist you if we can. You can ask questions, make comments about content or make suggestions as to what you would like to see in our newsletter, website or our workshops/conferences. We are here to help and we appreciate your comments as many times they lead to articles or ideas for speakers/workshops. You can send your questions/comments/suggestions to info@SteelMarketUpdate.com.
As always your business is truly appreciated by all of us here at Steel Market Update.
John Packard, Publisher
John Packard
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Final Thoughts
It’s once again A Tale of Two Cities in the steel market. Some are almost euphoric about Trump’s victory. Others, some rather bearish, are more focused on the day-to-day market between now and Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.
Final Thoughts
One of the perhaps unintentional perks of being a trade journalist is the opportunity to travel and cover an array of industry conferences and events. Some I've attended have been at fun locations, like Palm Springs and Tampa, Fla. Others have been in more practical locations, like SMU’s Steel Summit in Atlanta and American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) and Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA) meetings in Washington, D.C.
Final Thoughts
t this point in the game I think what we can say about Nippon Steel’s proposed buy of Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel is that it will go through, it won’t go through, or the outcome will be something new and completely unexpected. Then again, I’m probably still missing a few options.
Final Thoughts
President-elect Donald Trump continues to send shockwaves through the political establishment (again). And steel markets and ferrous scrap markets continue to be, well, anything but shocking. As the French writer Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr wrote in 1849, "The more things change, the more they stay the same." (I thought the quote might have been Yankees catcher Yogi Berra in 1949. Google taught me something new today.)
Final Thoughts
President-elect Donald Trump will officially retake the White House on Jan. 20. I’ve been getting questions about how his administration’s policies might reshape the steel industry and domestic manufacturing. I covered the tumult and norm busting of Trump's first term: Section 232, Section 301, USMCA - and that's just on the trade policy side of things. It's safe to say that we'll have no shortage of news in 2025 when it comes to trade and tariffs.