Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
May 15, 2017
I have read reports that suggest the first fully integrated mill in Vietnam, Formosa Ha Tinh Steel, has received permission to test their #1 blast furnace. The Vietnamese government has approved the pollution control equipment and the company is going to be allowed to run the blast furnace on a six-month trial period. In July 2016, this same mill caused a devastating toxic spill that impacted 125 miles of coastline in the province of Ha Tinh and three other provinces in Central Vietnam, affecting the country’s fishing and tourism industries.
We have been working on a new section for members in our website. The section is entitled “Trade Cases” and we have the results of the corrosion resistant (CORE), cold rolled, hot rolled and cut-to-length plate (CTL) in the site. The data can be found under the Resources tab (although we may move it to the Analysis tab at a future date). Please take a look and advise what adjustments or new information you would like to see contained in the data. These pages were created based on a question from one of our member companies. SMU does react to questions and suggestions so please keep them coming: info@SteelMarketUpdate.com.
I will be traveling to Atlanta and then on to Chicago on Wednesday. I will be available by email should you have any need to reach me: John@SteelMarketUpate.com.
On Thursday I will be attending the Metal Industry sponsored Boy Scout Dinner at the Hilton Chicago Hotel at 720 South Michigan Avenue. If you would like to meet with me please shoot me an email with your cell number. I will email or text you back once I am able to review my schedule.
We had 16 new registrations for the SMU Steel Summit Conference which takes place on August 28, 29 & 30th. We are now over 300 registrations and well on our way to 500+ executives at this year’s event. We invite you to join us if you have not already made arrangements to do so. It will be the largest conference featuring “pure” steel people in North America this year. You can find out more details here or by contacting our office at 772-932-7538 or info@SteelMarketUpdate.com (or ask me if you are at the Boy Scout Dinner in Chicago on Thursday). There are 103 days to go…
As always, your business is truly appreciated by all of us here at Steel Market Update.
John Packard, Publisher
John Packard
Read more from John PackardLatest in Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Some of you have told me that the current market feels about as crazy as early 2021 when demand snapped back after the initial outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Others have said it might be more like late February/early March 2022, when Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine – and, in the process, caused […]
Final Thoughts
To say we’ve entered a “Brave New World” since Jan. 20 might be an exaggeration, but we’ve definitely entered a different one.
Final Thoughts
I think it’s fair to say that the last few weeks – and last week especially – have been among the most intense for any of us covering steel (or aluminum).
Final Thoughts
A look at how SMU survey respondents are reacting to President Trump's recent actions on tariffs.
Final Thoughts
A lot of the changes basically entail rolling back what I’ll call, for fun, Section 232 Lite. S232 Lite resulted from watering down what I’ll call OG S232 – the one first imposed in March 2018 - with exemptions and exclusions over the years. Now, OG Section 232, is back with its across-the-board 25% tariffs against everyone.