ForgeCast Episode 2: Ava Hascall, Hascall Steel

Ava Hascall, CMO of Hascall Steel Company, joined the ForgeCast this week, sharing some insider knowledge on recent end-user trends, misconceptions about the steel industry, and a nuanced take on tariffs. Highly recommend for anyone who wants to get an inside view of the current state of the steel industry and what it's like running a large family owned business.

Some highlights:

1. State of the industry: "Automotive is leveling off and now the higher tech industries [data centers] we're seeing more growth…automotive defaults are at ~5% right now on automotive loans, so…a lot more stock on the ground, then 9 to 12 months later, we're just going to see reduced demand"
2. Misconceptions about the steel industry: "A lot of people think the mills have massive foresight into what's happening in the world. Actually, it's the service centers that know because we're looking at people's inquiry every single day. We know, OK, what commodities are hot right now? What gauges are hot right now?"
3. On tariff complexities: "You take away foreign competition, yes the price level increases one time, but does it keep increasing because there isn't competition? That's another question."