Steel prices forcasted to go up 66%

[greasemonkeyok]

We had foreign steel imported into the US as far back as 1968. The guys who stretched the cables in the pre-stressed plant preferred the Japanese cables because they said they were less likely to snap.

One inch steel cable flying through the air like a buggy whip can ruin your day. For a while there was a problem with counterfeit pipe coming from the former Soviet block countries (stamped with a higher grade than it actually was). Haven't heard as much about it lately.

 

[dmccarty]

It also means the Fed will have to raise interest rates, letting the air out of the bubble they created. Not likely anytime soon.

Yeppers. I do think interest rates and inflation are going to go up. This will cheapen the dollar to help pay off the national debt. I could not afford a house back in the mid/late 80's because the mortgage rates were 10-12%. I hope it does not happen.

Later,
Dan

 

[ultrarunner]

Yeppers. I do think interest rates and inflation are going to go up. This will cheapen the dollar to help pay off the national debt. I could not afford a house back in the mid/late 80's because the mortgage rates were 10-12%. I hope it does not happen.

Later,
Dan

I'm thinking along the same lines... my first mortgage was 12.5% and I was told how lucky I was... a friend bought a Condo and was near 15%

I was able to refi on the way down at no cost... so that helped... as rates dropped, home prices in my area increased... I believe I came out ahead buying at a time of high rates because it really depressed prices...

 

[dmccarty]

I'm thinking along the same lines... my first mortgage was 12.5% and I was told how lucky I was... a friend bought a Condo and was near 15%

I was able to refi on the way down at no cost... so that helped... as rates dropped, home prices in my area increased... I believe I came out ahead buying at a time of high rates because it really depressed prices...

I think the rate on the first house mortgage I had was 8%. This was back in the mid 90's and I thought that was a great rate. Then I was able to refi to 7%! Very happy was I. :thumbsup:

When we built the country house I think we might have had a 6-6.5% loan. I was even happier. :laughing::laughing::laughing: Then the rates dropped and now we are under 5%! Which is a rate I never thought I would ever see. I am afraid it is a rate that will only be seen one in a generation.

My guess is that inflation is going to go boom and I will be paying off the loan with very cheap dollars. I knew a family back in the 80s who had bought a house in the 70's when the rates were low. They had a modest house, a low rate and very low payments, 300ish a month. I was paying $500-600 a month for a small apartment at the time. I think we will be seeing that sort of disparity in payments between rentals and mortgages with low rates.

Back to steel, the WSJ had another report that was more specific to US steel prices. The steel companies have been loosing money. Quite a bit of money. USS steal had $1.5ish billion in cash at the start of last year. They lost a few hundred million and they have $500-600 million they have to pay for pensions. This left them with $500-600ish million going into 2011. If they do not at least break even they will have no cash by this time next year. The pension payments are killing them.

Demand was looking to pick up but the prices of the commodities they need to produce steel have been going up as well.

Later,
Dan