Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
November 12, 2018
I am back in my office for a few weeks after having just gone to the Pittsburgh offices of CRU. I continue to be amazed at the strength of the people CRU has hired both in the United States and elsewhere around the world. They are very supportive of the Steel Market Update business, and we are working diligently on a number of projects that will benefit our members and those attending our conferences and workshops in the future. Stay tuned.
Since I have been traveling, I don’t have a lot of words of wit and wisdom this evening. Flat rolled pricing continues to be in a state of flux and we are not sure when and where the bottom of the market will be. I will be digging into this subject more in the days ahead.
We are booking new registrations for our January 2019 Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals workshop. We have already trained over 600 individuals within the steel and manufacturing industries about the steelmaking process and how the steel markets work. You can learn more by going to our website: www.SteelMarketUpdate.com/events/steel101 or you are welcome to give me a call at 800-432-3475.
I want to take a moment to mention that SMU also does custom workshops on a variety of topics. We have done sales training, customer service training, a mini-version of our Steel 101 program, and we would consider any program that fits within our abilities to get the best instructors. If you have an interest, you can reach out to me and let me know what you would like for your people to learn (or better appreciate) and we will put together a proposal for you to consider. If you have an interest, you can contact me by phone or by email: John@SteelMarketUpdate.com
At this moment there is a large contingent of individuals on a free trial of our newsletter and website. I hope you take the time to review the website, ask questions of us and think about what we cover on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. We will be offering a webinar the week after Thanksgiving for those interested in our newsletter services. In the webinar, you will get to listen to me “live” as I discuss a little of the history of Steel Market Update and how our value proposition is much different than other periodicals you may have seen in the market. Look for your invitation to the webinar in the coming days.
As always, your business is truly appreciated by all of us here at Steel Market Update.
John Packard, President & CEO
John Packard
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Final Thoughts
The whole SMU team is packing up our laptops and our SMU polos/cardigans, loading up the PowerPoint slides, and preparing to make the trek down to Florida for the Tampa Steel Conference. There will be plenty to talk about!
Final Thoughts
From one group of folks, I’ve heard that Trump might not wait until Feb. 1 – the date he threatened on to place tariffs on China, Canada, and Mexico. They say he could act as soon as Friday. And then there are those who don’t think anything will happen before April 1. That’s the deadline for Commerce, Treasury, and USTR to submit key reports on “America First Trade Policy” to President Trump.
Final Thoughts
Trump made a clarification in a speech on Monday. Previously, he had declared the word “tariff” the most beautiful word in the dictionary. No longer.
Final Thoughts
President Donald Trump on Sunday hammered Colombia with 25% tariffs and threatened to increase them to 50%. Trump in a post on Truth Social said he took the action not because of a trade dispute but because the South American nation had refused to accept planes carrying deported immigrants. The president also cited "national security" concerns, just as he did to justify 25% Section 232 tariffs on steel in his first term. Even the 50% threat echoes his first term. Turkish steel, like that of most nations, was assessed a 25% tariff in March 2018. Trump doubled Turkey's tariff to 50% via a tweet in August of that year over a matter unrelated to steel.
Final Thoughts
We surveyed many of you this week and asked what you wanted to see from the new Trump administration. Responses were varied but fell largely into three groups: tariffs and trade policy, the Nippon-U.S. Steel deal, and those who are concerned about too much government sway in steel. Some also expressed hope that President Trump would continue the infrastructure spending that began under former President Biden.