EoW January 2014

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Transatlantic cable
January 2014 43
Manufacturing
The political stalemate in Washington that forced a partial
federal government shutdown for 16 days in October did not
prevent the US manufacturing sector from expanding at its
fastest monthly pace in two years, according to one industry
report. The Institute for Supply Management (ISP) said on
1st November that its index of national factory activity rose to
56.4 in October, the best showing since April 2011. A separate
report, by the nancial data rm Markit, was less encouraging:
its nal Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index stood at
51.8 for the month, beating the preliminary October reading
but coming close to the weakest nal showing since October
2012. Even so, both surveys – which use some di erent
methodologies, including one related to seasonal adjustment
– indicated expansion in the manufacturing sector, and the ISP
gure refuted expectations of a slight slowdown in the growth
rate. The October data indicated quickening growth in the
goods-producing sector for the fth month in a row.
Automotive
Futuristic no longer, cars that run
on hydrogen may be ready for prime time
A highlight of the Los Angeles Auto Show in November was
not, as might have been expected, a battery-powered or hybrid
car but an SUV with an electric motor powered by a stack of
hydrogen fuel cells. Set for sale or lease in 2014, the Hyundai
Tucson will be the rst mass-market vehicle of its kind to
become available in the United States. Hardly a new concept,
automotive fuel cell technology has intrigued carmakers since
the 1960s; but obstacles such as high cost, safety concerns, and
a scarcity of lling stations dampened their enthusiasm. Hyundai
now claims to have overcome safety and storage issues with a
rear-mounted tank that has passed crash tests. And in California,
where the South Korean carmaker plans to start o ering the
Tucson, nine lling stations are now open to the plans. State
legislators recently allocated about $200 million per year for
100 more, to be built over a decade.
While Hyundai is beating others to market with the Tucson,
competition – mainly from its Japanese rivals Honda and Toyota
– can be expected. Honda Motor Co was also at Los Angeles,
showcasing a car which it says pre gures the aerodynamic
design of a next-generation fuel-cell vehicle to be launched in
2015. And at the Tokyo Motor Show, also in November, Toyota
Motor Corp was scheduled to introduce its own concept fuel-cell
car, being readied for distribution in the mass market in 2015.
As for General Motors, which has spent considerable time and
resources on battery-powered cars such as the Chevrolet Volt,
the largest US automaker continues work on fuel cell vehicles
but has none in its current new-product pipeline. At Los Angeles
on 18th November, company spokesman Dan Flores told AP that
more work needs to be done on cost and infrastructure to make
the cars viable.
† Hydrogen cars may be arriving in time to help automakers
meet newly announced goals for zero-emissions cars. In late
October eight key states, including California and New York,
pledged to work together to put 3.3 million battery-powered
cars, plug-in hybrids, and other clean-burning vehicles on
their roads by 2025. This would amount to more than 15
times the number of zero-emissions vehicles projected to be
in use in the entire US by 2015.
The other states in the pact are Massachusetts, Maryland,
Oregon, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Vermont. Taken
together, the eight states represent about 23 per cent of the
US auto market.
Elsewhere in automotive . . .
† The US Treasury Department said on 21 st November that it
would sell its remaining shares in General Motors by year’s
end, allowing the government to sever its last remaining
ties to the bailed-out automaker a few months sooner
than expected. Meeting the projected timeline would clear
the last vestiges of the controversial 2009 rescues of GM
and Chrysler. In exchange for providing loans to the two
carmakers, the Obama administration took majority stakes
in the companies. The lifelines to GM and Chrysler have cost
American taxpayers several billion dollars. But administration
o cials have long argued that the aim was not to make a
pro t: the investments were meant instead to preserve the
struggling auto industry, badly wounded by the nancial
crisis. Other bailouts that Washington provided during
the crisis, including those to the insurance giant American
International Group (AIG) and a host of banks, generated
pro ts by the time they were concluded.
Steel
† Ruukki, a Finnish manufacturer of special steels, announced
on 19th November that it had entered the North American
market with the opening of a US headquarters in Pittsburgh
and a Canadian headquarters in Toronto. Initial o erings will
be the company’s two main product lines: high-strength
Optim and wear-resistant Raex steels.
† Taylor Steel (Stoney Creek, Ontario) has commissioned an
$8.5 million advanced high strength (AHS) slitter for cutting
the new steels in increasing demand from carmakers.
Company founder Michael Taylor told the Hamilton Spectator
(19th September) that he believes the unit to be the rst in
North America to surmount breakdown problems associated
with slitting steel for auto parts. Taylor Steel USA and Taylor
Coil Processing – both in Lordstown, Ohio – are wholly
owned subsidiaries of the Canadian company, which also
operates a car dealership in nearby Hamilton.
† American at-rolled steel buyers were saying in late Autumn
that they expected pricing to stay level through year-end;
but some, at least, expressed concern that import pressure
might put what Platts termed “a psychological ceiling” on
prices. One service centre source told the metals information
provider that a glut of imports would likely arrive in
rst-quarter 2014 if prices remained elevated relative to the
world market, creating imbalance. (“US Steel Sheet Prices
Still Angled Up, Imports Creating Concern,” 15 th November)
While no major domestic mill had formally announced a
steel sheet price increase since hikes in early October by
Severstal and AK Steel of $20 and $30 per ton, respectively,
Platts did note reports that US Steel was quoting higher
prices to its customers and Nucor “had refused to budge”
from its $680-per-ton list price. One trader commented that,
although further price rises would not be a surprise, many
major mills were wary of going “too far, too fast,” pushing
buyers into the global market. “It just looks better if they
move it gradually,” he said. “I think they’re being smart.”
Dorothy Fabian – USA Editor