Times have been pretty good for U.S. producers and distributors of steel plate, but there are worries the conditions may get a little softer in the back half of the year.

Tariff talk dominated the steel market in 2018. How will trade policy and other issues affect the market for the steel supply chain over the next 12 months?

Demand softened and margins were compressed for merchant bar producers and distributors in 2017, though signs point to a slightly better year to come. Demand for merchant bar has been stable to slightly down this year, though the real weakness in the market has been on profit margins.

The carbon plate market is bouncing back from difficult 2016, but how much won’t be known until Section 232 investigation is complete. The market for steel plate through the first half of 2017 is improved, though uncertainties are keeping it from reaching earlier predictions.

Economists are forecasting another so-so year for the U.S. economy overall in 2014. When searching for positives about the metals market, most experts are quick to point to “North America’s energy renaissance,” or the “accelerating auto industry.” In fact, what may turn out to be the most welcomed change for metals producers and distributors is the long-awaited resurgence of nonresidential construction.