Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
Written by John Packard
January 17, 2020
On Monday, we will begin our mid-January flat rolled and plate steel market trends questionnaire, and by the end of the week we will publish our analysis. Our Premium level members will be able to review our analysis, which will be presented in a PowerPoint presentation on Friday. Those who participate in this week’s questionnaire will also be granted access to the presentation. If you would like to be added to our invitation list, or if you would like to learn more about becoming a Premium subscriber, please contact us at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com
I am deep in the process of putting together this year’s conference program. We are beginning to get responses to our invitations to speak, and the quality of the speakers we have confirmed so far is exceptional. Many of you already know of Dr. Alan Beaulieu of ITR Economics. Beaulieu has been a fixture at our conferences since we moved to Atlanta many years ago. He is the best economic forecasting speaker I have seen, and I believe our attendees agree. Here is a video of Beaulieu from the 2019 Conference.
On Friday, I confirmed the keynote speaker for the youth segment of our program. His name is Ryan Avery and he is a fantastic speaker. I heard him speak twice at a recent HARDI conference, and I was duly impressed both with his skills as a speaker, and with the message he will share about companies attracting and keeping young leaders in their organizations. In 2012, Avery was the youngest winner of the prestigious World Championship of Public Speaking, besting more than 10,000 other speakers. Now in his early 30s, he will not disappoint. He will be speaking in the 1 p.m. slot on Wednesday as we kick off how to attract, train and maintain young people into your company. We will have three segments on this topic on Wednesday afternoon. Be sure to make plans to stay just a little longer. I promise you will not be disappointed. Here is a link to Ryan Avery website, and some of his videos.
We have already registered five times more people for the 2020 SMU Steel Summit Conference than we did at this time last year for the 2019 event. Last year we topped out at 1,078 attendees. This year we expect close to 1,200 as the word is out – the SMU Steel Summit Conference is THE place to see and to be seen in the industry. You can register by clicking on this link. You can learn more about the conference and see what companies attended last year by going to www.SteelMarketUpdate.com/Events/Steel-Summit
Speaking of registration being open, we also are registering those interested in attending our next Steel 101: Introduction to Steel Making & Market Fundamentals Workshop which will be held in Merrillville, Ind., (just outside of Chicago) on March 31 and April 1, 2020. We will tour the NLMK Portage electric arc furnace steel mill. For more details go to www.SteelMarketUpdate.com/Events/Steel101
We are moving closer to Feb. 1, 2020, which is the date when prices will increase on subscriptions for our Executive and Premium newsletters. If you would like to maintain current prices, you can do so by contacting Paige Mayhair at 724-720-1012 or by email Paige@SteelMarketUpdate.com. To keep prices as they are, payment will need to be received prior to Feb. 1.
As always, your business is truly appreciated by all of us here at Steel Market Update.
John Packard, President & CEO
John Packard
Read more from John PackardLatest in Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
And just like that, we’re wrapping up the last SMU newsletter of 2024. We’re closing out our 19th year and looking with wide-eyed anticipation to what 2025 will bring.
Final Thoughts
SMU looks back at stories from Decembers past, one, five, 10, and 100 years ago.
Final Thoughts
It's that time of year again. You know, that time when people wonder if those things are drones in New Jersey or if the aliens are ready to come onto the stage just in time for Inauguration Day. What will that do for steel price volatility? In any case, the SMU team finds itself in Pittsburgh this week.
Final Thoughts
The Community Chat last Wednesday with ITR economist Taylor St. Germain is worth listening to if you couldn’t tune in live. You can find the replay and Taylor’s slide deck here. You can also find SMU reporter Stephanie Ritenbaugh’s writeup of the webinar here. Taylor is Alan Beaulieu’s protégé at ITR. Many of you know Alan from his talks at SMU Steel Summit. I found Taylor’s analysis just as insightful as Alan’s.
Final Thoughts
Cracks have formed in what has been presented as the Biden administration’s united front against Nippon Steel’s play for U.S. Steel. A report from the Financial Times said parts of the administration are at odds on the deal.