Two Northeast Missouri Die-Casting Companies
Weathering Storm
Americans on Healthcare Reform
Trade Deficit Dampens Recovery, Destroys Jobs
Die Casters Must Act Now to Stop New Union Drives
Sign Up For The Plant Management Conference & Tour
Magnesium Ruling
Two Northeast Missouri Die-Casting Companies Weathering Storm
HANNIBAL, Mo. -- Automotive manufacturers in Marion and Monroe counties have been hit hard by the
economic downturn and the slumping automobile industry.
Pace Industries is closing its doors, and Intermet filed bankruptcy, and its assets were bought at an
auction, leaving the future of the plants in Monroe City and Palmyra in doubt.
However, two area die-casting manufacturers have weathered the worst of the wild economic ride --
Lakeside Casting Solutions in Monroe City and Spartan Light Metal Products Inc. in Hannibal.
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Americans on Healthcare Reform
PRINCETON, NJ -- A review of public opinion research on healthcare reform reveals that Americans may
have hit the slowdown button. One primary cause for this appears to be public concerns about cost, but
there are a number of additional elements involved. The bottom line is a sense that, while Americans
apparently favor some type of healthcare reform in the long term, they are in no hurry to see healthcare
reform legislation passed in the short-term on a rushed schedule.
Herewith is a summary of 10 key elements of American public opinion on healthcare reform, based on a
review of the latest survey research as of the week of July 27-31.
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click here.
Trade Deficit Dampens Recovery, Destroys Jobs
Wednesday, the Commerce Department will report June international trade in goods and services. The trade
deficit is expected to rise to $28.5 billion from $26 billion in May.
The ballooning trade deficit is a principal cause of the Great Recession, threatens to stifle recovery
and push unemployment above 10 percent through 2011
At 2.2 percent of GDP, the trade deficit subtracts about more from demand for U.S.-made goods and
services than President Obama's stimulus package adds. Moreover, Obama stimulus is temporary, whereas
the trade deficit is permanent.
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Die Casters Must Act Now to Stop New Union Drives
American employers, including those in the highly competitive die casting industry, face waves of
successful unionization drives if the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) becomes law. The EFCA, now before
Congress, does away with secret-ballot elections, allowing unions to organize a die caster if just they
obtain “authorization cards” from a bare majority of its workers, rather than the votes of a majority of
them in a secret ballot election. Moreover, the EFCA states that if a company does not negotiate a first
contract within 120 days, a government arbitrator will dictate a binding two-year agreement.Clearly, the
EFCA will be a true game-changer for American employers. The real question: why
do American employees seek out unions, and what can die casters like you do
to eliminate those reasons?
Sign Up For The Plant Management Conference & Tour
September 23/25 NADCA will host our annual Plant Management conference.
This two day event will feature presentations on the State of the
Industry, Carbon Footprints, and semi-solid metal processes. It will
also feature a plant tour to Chicago White Metal. Included in the low
registration fee of $250 for NADCA Corporate Members is breakfast,
lunch, an evening reception and a group networking dinner. Sign up
today at: http://www.diecasting.org/meetings/pm
Magnesium Ruling
NEW YORK (Metal-Pages) 10-Aug-09. The U.S. Commerce Department has held an anti-dumping duty rate of
43.58% on magnesium metal from Russian producer VSMPO-Avisma in its final review.
The final ruling announced on Monday covers imports of pure and alloy magnesium during the period of
Apri l 1 2007 to March 31 2008.
But the department said that it will continue to apply the “adverse facts” available to Avisma because
the company did not act to the best of its ability to comply with requests for information.
Under the ruling, the final anti-dumping margin for Avisma will remain at 43.58%, which is the highest
transaction-specific rate in any phase of the proceedings against Russian producers.
The previous dumping duty deposit rate for Avisma was 15.77%.
In its preliminary findings in April, the department said the rate would be introduced as Avisma
notified it on January 21 this year that it would not continue to participate in the administrative
review and requested the removal of all of its business proprietary information.
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