Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
April 17, 2015
We will begin our next flat rolled steel market analysis (survey for those of you new to SMU) on Monday morning. Invitations will be sent our by SurveyMonkey.com around 8 AM ET on Monday. If you receive an invitation please click on the link or button contained in the message to access your questionnaire.
Registrations continue for our next Steel 101 workshop which will be held in Merrillville, Indiana just outside of Chicago. The dates for the workshop are May 19 & 20th and the workshop will include a tour of the NLMK USA steel mill located in Portage, Indiana. The NLMK mill is a mini-mill, which means it uses an electric arc furnace (EAF) to reduce scrap to new steel. You can find more information about our program, instructors, costs and how to register in the Events section of our website. If you have any issues or if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to give us a call: 800-432-3475.
In this evening’s issue we have included the most recent currency article which is normally provided to our Premium level members approximately once every three weeks. The value of local currencies against the U.S. dollar is one of the main reasons why commodities (and steel) are having issues. The stronger the dollar the more attractive our market looks to other countries. If you would like to learn more about Premium level membership please contact our office: 800-432-3475 or info@SteelMarketUpdate.com. We will gladly provide a free trial period and we also provide special pricing for existing Executive level members who wish to upgrade their accounts.
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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United Airlines raised eyebrows earlier this month when it provided two forecasts for 2025 – one assuming a relatively stable economy and another assuming a recession. The reason? Uncertainty around the impact of President Trump’s policy shocks on the broader economy. And it sometimes feels like we’re seeing a battle between those two narratives (stable vs recession) play out within in the pages of this newsletter.
Final Thoughts
Despite some scary headlines lately (especially about Trump potentially firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell) this is not October 2008 (financial crisis) or March 2020 (onset of the pandemic). But it sure seems like we’ve taken a relatively strong economy and poured a thick sauce of uncertainty over it.
Final Thoughts
I put some of our survey data through ChatGpt, with interesting results.
Final Thoughts
Nearly 50% of respondents to our latest survey thought hot-rolled coil prices have already peaked. And where will those prices be two months from now? Responses were decidedly split on that question.