Commercial Metals Co (CMC) 2015 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Hello, and welcome, everyone, to today's Commercial Metals Company first-quarter FY15 earnings call.

大家好，歡迎大家參加今天的商業金屬公司 2015 財年第一季財報電話會議。

Today's call is being recorded.

今天的通話正在錄音。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員說明）

I would like to remind all participants that during the course of this conference call, the Company will make statements that provide information other than historical information, and will include expectations regarding the Company's future operations and capital spending.

我想提醒所有與會者，在本次電話會議期間，公司將發表聲明，提供歷史資訊以外的信息，並將包括對公司未來營運和資本支出的預期。

These statements are considered forward-looking, and may involve speculation, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from these expectations.

這些陳述被認為是前瞻性的，可能涉及猜測，並受到風險和不確定性的影響，可能導致實際結果與這些預期有重大差異。

These statements reflect the Company's beliefs based on current conditions that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, including those that are described in the Company's latest 10-K.

這些陳述反映了公司基於當前狀況的信念，這些狀況受到某些風險和不確定性的影響，包括公司最新 10-K 中描述的風險和不確定性。

Although these statements are based on management's current expectations and assumptions, CMC offers no assurance that events or facts will happen as expected.

儘管這些陳述是基於管理層當前的預期和假設，但 CMC 不保證事件或事實將按預期發生。

All statements are made only as of this date.

所有聲明僅截至當日作出。

Except as required by law, CMC does not assume any obligation to update them in connection with future events, new information or otherwise.

除法律要求外，CMC 不承擔因未來事件、新資訊或其他原因而更新這些內容的任何義務。

Some numbers presented will be non-GAAP financial measures, and reconciliations can be found in the Company's earnings release or the Company's website.

提供的一些數據將是非公認會計準則財務指標，調節表可在公司的收益發布或公司網站中找到。

And now for opening remarks and introductions, I will turn the call over to Chairman of the Board, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Commercial Metals Company, Mr. Joe Alvarado.

現在，我將向商業金屬公司董事會主席、總裁兼執行長喬·阿爾瓦拉多 (Joe Alvarado) 先生致開幕詞和介紹。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Good morning, everyone, and Happy New Year.

大家早安，新年快樂。

Thank you for joining us to review CMC's results for the first quarter of FY15.

感謝您與我們一起回顧 CMC 2015 財年第一季的業績。

I will first cover highlights from the first quarter.

我將首先介紹第一季的亮點。

Barbara will then provide further financial details, and I will conclude our prepared remarks with comments on our outlook for the second quarter of FY15.

然後芭芭拉將提供進一步的財務細節，我將透過對 2015 財年第二季前景的評論來結束我們準備好的發言。

After which, we will open the call to questions.

之後，我們將開始提問。

As described in our earnings release this morning, we reported net sales of $1.7 billion for the first quarter of FY15, which was 4% higher than our net sales for the first quarter of FY14 of $1.6 billion.

正如我們今天早上發布的財報中所述，我們報告 2015 財年第一季的淨銷售額為 17 億美元，比 2014 財年第一季的 16 億美元淨銷售額高出 4%。

Earnings from continuing operations for our first quarter of FY15 were $38.3 million, or $0.32 per diluted share; an increase of $0.03 per diluted share when compared to the same quarter in the prior fiscal year.

2015 財年第一季持續經營收益為 3,830 萬美元，或攤薄後每股收益 0.32 美元；與上一財年同季相比，稀釋後每股增加 0.03 美元。

Also noted in our earnings release this morning is that the Board of Directors declared a dividend of $0.12 per share for stockholders of record on January 20, 2015.

今天早上的收益報告中還提到，董事會宣布向 2015 年 1 月 20 日登記在冊的股東派發每股 0.12 美元的股息。

The dividend will be paid on February 3, 2015.

股利將於2015年2月3日支付。

I will now highlight current trends and conditions in the markets in which we operate, as well as provide an update on a few strategic matters.

我現在將重點介紹我們經營所在市場的當前趨勢和狀況，並提供一些策略問題的最新情況。

First, we are encouraged by the steady growth of the US economy.

首先，美國經濟穩定成長令我們感到鼓舞。

As new jobs are created, average hourly wages increased, and the unemployment rate remained below 6% during our FY15 first quarter.

隨著新就業機會的創造，平均時薪增加，2015 財年第一季失業率維持在 6% 以下。

Furthermore, the demand pattern for US steel products remains solid, as the non-residential construction market continued its upward climb, with non-residential construction spending up approximately 6% over the first quarter of our prior fiscal year.

此外，美國鋼鐵產品的需求格局依然穩固，非住宅建築市場持續攀升，非住宅建築支出比上一財年第一季成長約 6%。

The continued improvement in non-residential construction spending led to higher shipments in our Americas mills and Americas fabrication segments.

非住宅建築支出的持續改善導致我們的美洲工廠和美洲製造部門的出貨量增加。

Although volumes have strengthened over the same period of the prior fiscal year, we continued to see pricing pressure as a result of elevated import activity.

儘管銷量較上一財年同期增加，但由於進口活動增加，我們仍面臨價格壓力。

Rebar imports have increased approximately 40% year over year, primarily from Turkey.

螺紋鋼進口量年增約 40%，主要來自土耳其。

And iron ore prices remained low, driving the cost of scrap down.

鐵礦石價格持續走低，帶動廢鋼成本下降。

Inversely, metal margins for the Americas mills expanded in the quarter as a result of improved finished goods selling prices and stable scrap prices.

相反，由於成品銷售價格提高和廢鋼價格穩定，美洲鋼廠的金屬利潤在本季有所擴大。

Our focus remains on evaluating a number of strategic growth initiatives, capitalizing on our vertically integrated operating model, and strong customer and market position in the US.

我們的重點仍然是評估許多策略性成長計劃，利用我們的垂直整​​合營運模式以及在美國強大的客戶和市場地位。

Continuing with comments regarding our international markets, the Polish economy continued to strengthen during our FY15 first quarter, specifically the manufacturing sector.

繼續評論我們的國際市場，波蘭經濟在 2015 財年第一季繼續走強，特別是製造業。

On the other hand, margins for our Polish operations remained under pressure due to broader economic concerns in the Eurozone.

另一方面，由於歐元區更廣泛的經濟擔憂，我們波蘭業務的利潤率仍面臨壓力。

Our international marketing and distribution segment reported outstanding results for the first quarter of FY15, as our steel trading division in the US benefited from strong shipments, in particular of tubular products.

我們的國際行銷和分銷部門在 2015 財年第一季報告了出色的業績，因為我們在美國的鋼鐵貿易部門受益於強勁的出貨量，特別是管材產品的出貨量。

However, in light of the recent decline in oil and gas prices, we are closely monitoring the demand for products exposed to the energy sector.

然而，鑑於近期石油和天然氣價格下跌，我們正在密切關注能源產業產品的需求。

As part of our share repurchase program that was approved in late October 2014, we purchased 560,493 shares of our common stock for approximately $9.3 million during the first quarter of FY15.

作為 2014 年 10 月下旬批准的股票回購計畫的一部分，我們在 2015 財年第一季以約 930 萬美元的價格購買了 560,493 股普通股。

To date, total purchases are approximately $13.3 million.

迄今為止，採購總額約為 1,330 萬美元。

With that overview, I will now turn the discussion over to Barbara Smith, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

有了上述概述，我現在將討論轉交給高級副總裁兼財務長芭芭拉史密斯 (Barbara Smith)。

Barbara?

芭芭拉？

Thank you, Joe.

謝謝你，喬。

Happy New Year, and good morning, everyone.

新年快樂，大家早安。

As Joe mentioned, for the first quarter of FY15 we reported earnings from continuing operations of $38.3 million, or $0.32 per diluted share, which compares to earnings from continuing operations of $33.7 million, or $0.29 per diluted share for the first quarter of the prior year.

正如Joe 所提到的，2015 財年第一季度，我們報告的持續營運收益為3,830 萬美元，即稀釋後每股收益0.32 美元，而前一年第一季持續營運收益為3,370 萬美元，即稀釋後每股收益0.29 美元。

Results from continuing operations for this year's first quarter included after-tax LIFO income of $4 million, or $0.03 per diluted share, compared with after-tax LIFO expense from continuing operations of $2.8 million, or $0.02 per diluted share for last year's first quarter.

今年第一季的持續經營業績包括稅後 LIFO 收入 400 萬美元，即稀釋後每股 0.03 美元，而去年第一季持續經營的稅後 LIFO 費用為 280 萬美元，即稀釋後每股 0.02 美元。

Turning to our results by segment, our Americas recycling segment recorded adjusted operating loss of $1.1 million in the first quarter of FY15, compared to adjusted operating profit of $839,000 in the first quarter of FY14.

轉向我們按部門劃分的業績，我們的美洲回收部門在 2015 財年第一季錄得調整後營業虧損 110 萬美元，而 2014 財年第一季調整後營業利潤為 839,000 美元。

Ferrous shipments declined 2%, and average ferrous metal margin declined $1 per short ton compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year.

黑色金屬出貨量下降 2%，平均黑色金屬利潤率與上一財年同期相比每短噸下降 1 美元。

Non-ferrous shipments increased 5%.

有色金屬出貨量成長 5%。

However, average non-ferrous metal margins continued to be pressured compared to the first quarter of FY14.

然而，與 2014 財年第一季相比，有色金屬平均利潤率持續承壓。

Furthermore, in the first quarter of FY14, this segment benefited from a pre-tax gain on real estate and facility relocation benefits of $3.7 million.

此外，在 2014 財年第一季度，該部門受益於房地產和設施搬遷福利的稅前收益 370 萬美元。

In contrast, the favorable change in pre-tax LIFO of $3.2 million was recorded for the first quarter of FY15 compared to the first quarter of the prior fiscal year.

相比之下，與上一財年第一季相比，2015 財年第一季稅前 LIFO 發生了 320 萬美元的有利變化。

Our Americas mills segment recorded adjusted operating profit of $75.4 million for this year's first quarter, making the highest adjusted operating profit recorded for this segment in any fiscal quarter since the onset of the global financial crisis.

今年第一季度，我們的美洲工廠部門調整後營業利潤為 7,540 萬美元，創下全球金融危機爆發以來該部門調整後營業利潤最高的財季記錄。

Our Americas mills segment recorded adjusted operating profit of $65.8 million during the same period last year.

去年同期，我們的美洲工廠部門調整後營業利潤為 6,580 萬美元。

This segment's strong results for the first quarter of FY15 were primarily due to a 7% increase in total shipments and a 4% per ton increase in average selling prices on stable average scrap costs compared to the first quarter of FY14.

該部門 2015 財年第一季的強勁業績主要是由於與 2014 財年第一季相比，總出貨量成長了 7%，平均廢鋼成本穩定，每噸平均售價上漲了 4%。

Overall, shipments of our higher-priced finished products, including rebar and merchants, increased approximately 34,000 short tons, while billet shipments increased approximately 15,000 short tons.

總體而言，包括螺紋鋼和商品在內的高價成品出貨量增加了約 34,000 短噸，而方坯出貨量增加了約 15,000 短噸。

Our Americas fabrication segment recorded adjusted operating loss of $3 million for this year's first quarter, compared to adjusted operating profit of $2.2 million in the prior year's first quarter.

我們的美洲製造部門今年第一季調整後營運虧損為 300 萬美元，而去年第一季調整後營運利潤為 220 萬美元。

Adjusted operating profit was impacted by an average metal margin compression of $14 per short ton for fabricated rebar in the first quarter of FY15 compared to the same period in the prior fiscal year.

與上一財年同期相比，2015 財年第一季加工螺紋鋼的平均金屬利潤每短噸壓縮 14 美元，影響了調整後的營業利潤。

Additionally, conversion cost for rebar fab increased $8 per short ton.

此外，螺紋鋼工廠的轉換成本每短噸增加 8 美元。

Partially offsetting these items was a favorable change in pre-tax LIFO of $2.9 million for the first quarter of FY15 compared to the first quarter of the prior fiscal year.

與上一財年第一季相比，2015 財年第一季稅前 LIFO 的有利變化為 290 萬美元，部分抵銷了這些項目。

We booked approximately 30,000 more fabricated rebar tons during this year's first quarter compared to the same period in the prior year; and the backlog is up approximately 22,000 tons over November 30, 2013.

今年第一季度，我們比去年同期多預訂了約 30,000 噸預製螺紋鋼；積壓量較2013年11月30日增加約2.2萬噸。

Our international mills segment recorded adjusted operating profit for the first quarter of FY15 of $4.2 million, compared to adjusted operating profit of $15.3 million for the same period last year.

我們的國際工廠部門 2015 財年第一季調整後營業利潤為 420 萬美元，而去年同期調整後營業利潤為 1,530 萬美元。

Adjusted operating profit in the first quarter of FY15 was negatively impacted by a decline in shipments of 55,000 tons, coupled with an average metal margin compression of 7% compared to the first quarter of FY14.

2015 財年第一季調整後營業利潤受到出貨量下降 55,000 噸的負面影響，加上平均金屬利潤率較 2014 財年第一季壓縮 7%。

Shipments declined during the first three months of FY15 due to sluggish demand in central Europe and a three-week planned maintenance outage at our Polish mini mill.

由於中歐需求低迷以及我們的波蘭短流程工廠計劃進行為期三週的維護停電，2015 財年的前三個月出貨量有所下降。

Our international marketing and distribution segment recorded an adjusted operating profit of $18.3 million for the first quarter of FY15 compared to adjusted operating profit of $2 million during the first quarter of FY14.

我們的國際行銷和分銷部門 2015 財年第一季調整後營業利潤為 1,830 萬美元，而 2014 財年第一季調整後營業利潤為 200 萬美元。

The improvement in adjusted operating profit was primarily attributed to an increase in margins and a $3.6-million favorable change in pre-tax LIFO for our trading divisions headquartered in the US.

調整後營業利潤的改善主要歸因於利潤率的增加以及總部位於美國的貿易部門稅前 LIFO 的 360 萬美元的有利變化。

In addition, our western European and Asian operations reported strong increase in shipments in the first quarter of FY15 compared with the same period in FY14.

此外，我們的西歐和亞洲業務報告稱，與 2014 財年同期相比，2015 財年第一季的出貨量強勁成長。

Turning to our balance sheet and liquidity: As of November 30, 2014, cash and short-term investments totaled $326.1 million; total liquidity was approximately $1 billion as of November 30, 2014.

談到我們的資產負債表和流動性：截至 2014 年 11 月 30 日，現金和短期投資總計 3.261 億美元；截至 2014 年 11 月 30 日，總流動資金約 10 億美元。

We have continued to maintain sufficient unused credit lines.

我們持續保持充足的未使用信貸額度。

Capital expenditures were $22.5 million for the first quarter of FY15, compared to $14.1 million in the prior year's first quarter.

2015 財年第一季的資本支出為 2,250 萬美元，而去年第一季的資本支出為 1,410 萬美元。

We estimate that our capital spending for FY15 will be in the range of $140 million to $180 million.

我們預計 2015 財年的資本支出將在 1.4 億至 1.8 億美元之間。

Thank you very much.

非常感謝。

And I'll now turn it back over to Joe for the outlook.

現在我將把它轉回給喬以了解前景。

Thank you, Barbara.

謝謝你，芭芭拉。

We are encouraged by the continued improvement in the US economy, with job growth and rising wages.

我們對美國經濟持續改善、就業成長和薪資上漲感到鼓舞。

US manufacturing activity expanded for the 18th consecutive month in November 2014, and US non-residential construction spending increased during the first three months of our FY15.

2014 年 11 月，美國製造業活動連續第 18 個月擴張，美國非住宅建築支出在 2015 財年的前三個月增加。

In November, the Architecture Billing Index, a leading indicator of construction activity, reported the seventh consecutive month of greater than 50, at 50.9.

11 月，建築活動領先指標建築計費指數連續第七個月超過 50，為 50.9。

Our second fiscal quarter has historically been slower as a result of a seasonal downturn in construction activity due to the holidays and the onset of winter weather.

從歷史上看，由於假期和冬季天氣的到來，建築活動出現季節性下滑，我們的第二財季增長速度一直較慢。

Consistent with prior years, we've planned outages for routine maintenance and equipment enhancements during the slower business activity over the winter months.

與往年一樣，我們計劃在冬季業務活動放緩期間進行停電，以進行日常維護和設備增強。

These activities allow us to prepare for stronger anticipated demand in our fiscal second half.

這些活動使我們能夠為下半年更強勁的預期需求做好準備。

That completes our commentary on the first-quarter results.

我們對第一季業績的評論到此結束。

Thank you for your attention.

感謝您的關注。

We will now open the call to questions.

我們現在開始提問。

(Operator Instructions).

（操作員說明）。

At this our first question comes from Luke Folta at Jefferies.

我們的第一個問題來自 Jefferies 的 Luke Folta。

Good morning, Joe, Barbara.

早安，喬，芭芭拉。

Good morning, Luke.

早上好，盧克。

I guess first question I had was on the fabrication business.

我想我的第一個問題是關於製造業務的。

We're seeing -- this is another quarter of very solid volume growth, but with the business still generating losses and clearly there's margin issues there.

我們看到，這又是銷量成長非常穩健的一個季度，但業務仍在產生虧損，而且顯然存在利潤率問題。

You've talked about improving mix towards more private work as of late, as the backlog has grown.

隨著積壓工作的增加，您最近談到如何改進混合工作以實現更多私人工作。

Can you just maybe give us some more detail on what's going on with the margins in that business?

您能否給我們更多有關該業務利潤率情況的詳細資訊？

You touched on imports being a factor in the remarks, but I would think that with this sort of volume increase that we should start to see some positive pricing momentum at some point here.

您在評論中提到進口是一個因素，但我認為，隨著這種數量的增加，我們應該在某個時候開始看到一些積極的定價勢頭。

Just any thoughts on that would be very helpful.

對此的任何想法都會非常有幫助。

Luke, it's not just a factor.

盧克，這不僅僅是一個因素。

It's the most significant factor that we face on the fab side of the business with imported product being brought in at significantly below market prices, causes us to have to be competitive in quoting on our fab business.

這是我們在晶圓廠業務方面面臨的最重要因素，進口產品的進口價格遠低於市場價格，導致我們在晶圓廠業務的報價方面必須具有競爭力。

So we've seen an overall strength in metal margins in the steel mill side of the business and a deterioration on the fab side.

因此，我們看到鋼廠方面的金屬利潤率整體強勁，而晶圓廠方面則有所惡化。

Mostly owing to the imported product.

主要是由於進口產品。

So it's not a small factor.

所以這不是一個小因素。

It's the most significant factor that we're seeing, really across the board.

這是我們所看到的最重要的因素，確實是全面的。

I'm surprised you see that more so on the fabrication side of the business than the mill side of the business.

我很驚訝你發現在製造方面比在工廠方面更是如此。

Is that because you've got competing fabricators who are buying imported product at much lower price so they can charge a lot less?

這是因為有競爭的製造商以低得多的價格購買進口產品，這樣他們的收費就可以低很多嗎？

And why isn't that showing up on the rebar price from the mill segment in?

為什麼這沒有顯示在軋機部門的螺紋鋼價格？

Our fab businesses are dependent on sourcing material competitively and we compete against independents who also have access to imported product.

我們的晶圓廠業務依賴於有競爭力的原料採購，我們與也可以獲得進口產品的獨立企業競爭。

And with the significant pricing differential that we're seeing in rebar pricing and anticipated pricing of those products causes the independents to be more aggressive in their pricing to secure business at less than attractive margins -- the kinds of margins that we'd like to book at.

由於我們在螺紋鋼定價和這些產品的預期定價中看到的顯著定價差異，導致獨立公司在定價上更加激進，以確保以低於有吸引力的利潤率獲得業務——我們希望獲得的利潤率預訂於.

So the battle there is really in the independent fab business or against independent fabricators as opposed to into the mill segment itself.

因此，這場戰鬥實際上是在獨立晶圓廠業務或針對獨立製造商，而不是在工廠領域本身。

Got it.

知道了。

Okay.

好的。

And then just as a follow-up on M&D, another very strong quarter there.

然後，作為 M&D 的後續行動，又一個非常強勁的季度。

Continues to be a bit of a black box from an outsider's perspective looking in.

從局外人的角度來看，它仍然有點像一個黑盒子。

Can you give us some sense of what the moving parts were?

能為我們介紹一下活動部件是什麼嗎？

We've definitely seen what looks like inflection over the last couple of quarters in profitability in that business.

我們確實看到了過去幾季該業務獲利能力的變化。

I know Australia being out of it is a factor.

我知道澳洲被排除在外是一個因素。

But anything that you can help us think about in terms of what weed should be monitoring or how should we think about that, the profitability, particularly margins in that business looking forward here?

但是，您可以幫助我們思考應該監控哪些雜草，或者我們應該如何思考該業務的盈利能力，特別是該業務的利潤率？

Well, I'd attribute it to a couple things.

嗯，我將其歸因於幾件事。

One, it's not only steel trading but our raw materials trading business that's improved on a year-on-year basis and has steadily improved from the summer into the first quarter.

第一，不僅是鋼材貿易，我們的原料貿易業務也較去年同期有所改善，從夏季到一季度都在穩步改善。

There's no doubt that our taking Australia business and putting it in disc ops is also a factor.

毫無疑問，我們收購澳洲業務並將其投入光碟營運也是一個因素。

But more, it's about better trading activities, particularly in North America, but also in Europe and our UK operations.

但更重要的是，這與更好的貿易活動有關，特別是在北美，但也在歐洲和我們的英國業務。

And a steady flow of volume in Southeast Asia out of our Singapore office, albeit at smaller margins.

我們新加坡辦事處的東南亞業務量穩定流出，儘管利潤較小。

Are you going to talk about what products, though, in the international trading businesses are your biggest?

不過，您想談談國際貿易業務中哪些產品是您最大的產品嗎？

And what's improved?

以及有何改進？

I mentioned tubular product as one example.

我提到管狀產品就是一個例子。

We trade in a whole range of long and flat products, long products including tubular products and we do that really everywhere.

我們經營各種長材和扁平材產品，包括管材產品在內的長材產品，我們在任何地方都這樣做。

It'll vary from market to market which products are most attractive for us to trade.

不同市場對我們交易最有吸引力的產品會有所不同。

In North America it's a combination of flat and long products including tubular and some SBQ as well as other products.

在北美，它是扁平材和長材產品的組合，包括管材和一些 SBQ 以及其他產品。

So it isn't just one thing, Luke.

所以這不僅僅是一件事，盧克。

Okay.

好的。

And then just one more, if I could, for Barbara.

如果可以的話，再為芭芭拉再做一次。

Inventories were pretty good use of cash this quarter, $100 million or so, turns are a bit lower than where they had been historically.

本季庫存現金利用率相當高，約 1 億美元，週轉率略低於歷史水準。

Is this something we should expect to reverse fairly soon?

我們應該期待這種情況很快就會扭轉嗎？

Yes, you'll see that start to unwind in the following three quarters.

是的，您會看到這種情況在接下來的三個季度內開始緩解。

Typically we see it unwind toward the end of our fiscal year.

通常情況下，我們會在財政年度結束時看到這種情況的緩解。

I think it's reflective of overall higher level business activity levels on the M&D side as well as on the mill side.

我認為這反映了研發方面以及工廠方面整體較高水準的業務活動水準。

Some is a little bit of inventory build ahead of some of these outages to support these outages.

有些是在某些停電之前建立一點庫存來支援這些停電。

So typically this is our highest level of working capital between first and second fiscal quarter.

因此，通常這是我們第一財季和第二財季之間營運資金的最高水準。

Okay.

好的。

Thank you very much.

非常感謝。

Our next question comes from Evan Kurtz at Morgan Stanley.

我們的下一個問題來自摩根士丹利的埃文·庫爾茨。

Happy New Year, Joe and Barbara.

新年快樂，喬和芭芭拉。

Happy New Year, Evan.

新年快樂，埃文。

Question on energy exposure.

關於能量暴露的問題。

I was hoping you guys could just kind of walk us through each of the segments and kind of talk about where you might have some exposure to weaker energy prices and any kind of quantification you can give us would be really helpful.

我希望你們能夠引導我們了解每個部分，並討論一下你們可能會在哪些方面受到能源價格疲軟的影響，以及你們能給我們提供的任何類型的量化都會非常有幫助。

Thanks.

謝謝。

So let me take a stab at that first.

所以讓我先試試看。

We've been getting lots of questions about energy in the same way we got a lot of questions about iron ore.

我們收到了很多有關能源的問題，就像我們收到了很多有關鐵礦石的問題一樣。

And I guess what I would say to that, Evan, it's an evolving situation.

我想我會對此說些什麼，埃文，這是一個不斷變化的情況。

It'll settle itself out.

它會自己解決的。

What the decline in oil prices is doing is freeing up a lot of disposable income for people to stimulate spending a lot of different ways that ultimately could lead to nonresidential construction across the board.

油價下跌為人們釋放了大量可支配收入，以刺激多種不同方式的支出，最終可能導致全面的非住宅建設。

And remember that we're a nationally based, broad-based Company with a footprint throughout the Southeast.

請記住，我們是一家立足全國、業務廣泛的公司，業務遍及整個東南部地區。

So while the Texas market is really important to us, I think there's a tendency for there to be an association that lower oil prices mean lower construction spending.

因此，雖然德州市場對我們來說非常重要，但我認為存在一種趨勢，即較低的油價意味著較低的建築支出。

That may be the case that some projects will be pulled, but generally speaking we're still seeing positive growth and strong demand in construction markets.

可能會出現一些項目被取消的情況，但總的來說，我們仍然看到建築市場的積極成長和強勁需求。

So it's hard to correlate an exact dollar value.

因此很難關聯到確切的美元價值。

I think this will continue to settle itself out and there'll be an adjustment in drilling activity.

我認為這個問題將繼續解決，鑽探活動也會有所調整。

So I would say the most significant impact, this is now I'm talking from my own experience, will generally come on tubular products and other products that support the energy industry, like SBQ products.

所以我想說，最重大的影響，這是我現在根據我自己的經驗所說的，通常會出現在管材產品和其他支援能源產業的產品上，例如 SBQ 產品。

So that's where we would see it in our order book, more than anything else, as well as a decline in demand for construction spending.

因此，這就是我們在訂單簿中看到的最重要的地方，以及建築支出需求的下降。

Having said that, we still see a strong order book, a strong backlog.

話雖如此，我們仍然看到強勁的訂單和積壓。

I think a more measured approach by some of those that are dependent on energy money for construction spending going forward.

我認為，一些依賴能源資金用於未來建築支出的人應該採取更謹慎的做法。

But it really hasn't sorted itself out in a negative way, other than from an apprehension or anticipation.

但除了憂慮或期待之外，它實際上並沒有以消極的方式解決自己。

But the order book remains strong.

但訂單依然強勁。

And do you have any visibility in your order book to which projects are energy related and what sort of percentage that might be of the total book?

您是否可以在訂單簿中了解哪些項目與能源相關以及該項目可能佔總訂單量的百分比是多少？

We'll take that as a follow-up.

我們會將其作為後續行動。

We would include in part of that wind turbines and wind farms.

我們將包括部分風力渦輪機和風電場。

Which thinking about construction spending and energy prices even with oil coming down, there's still a desire in the part of the government to stimulate spending on alternative forms of energy.

考慮到建築支出和能源價格，即使油價下跌，政府仍希望刺激替代能源的支出。

That so far has continued.

到目前為止，這種情況一直持續著。

So that's one example where we have a very direct impact on -- as a result of energy pricing, where so far there's been almost no reaction whatsoever.

這是一個我們對能源定價產生非常直接影響的例子，到目前為止幾乎沒有任何反應。

I would add, and like to point out, Evan, that lower energy prices could be -- provide some positive momentum around the renewal of the transportation bill.

埃文，我想補充一點，並想指出的是，較低的能源價格可能會為交通法案的更新提供一些積極的動力。

I think that discussion is only beginning.

我認為討論才剛開始。

But it might create an opportunity where they can find the funding mechanism and that could be a real positive that's right now not factored in anybody's outlook.

但這可能會創造一個機會，讓他們能夠找到融資機制，這可能是一個真正的積極因素，但目前尚未考慮到任何人的前景。

That's an interesting point.

這是一個有趣的點。

Thanks.

謝謝。

I'll turn it over.

我會把它翻過來。

Thanks, Evan.

謝謝，埃文。

Our next question comes from Sal Tharani at Goldman Sachs.

我們的下一個問題來自高盛的薩爾·塔拉尼。

Good morning, guys.

早上好傢伙。

Good morning, Sal.

早安，薩爾。

I want to ask a couple of questions.

我想問幾個問題。

You mentioned conversion costs in fabrication was up.

您提到製造的轉換成本上升了。

Any particular reason?

有什麼特別的原因嗎？

Is this a recurring stuff or was there some one-time item?

這是重複出現的東西還是有一些一次性的東西？

Due to the stronger order book in fab, we did incur some additional freight, just to meet some of the commitments.

由於晶圓廠訂單較多，我們確實產生了一些額外的運費，只是為了履行一些承諾。

And we have done some staffing up in preparation of the busier time of year.

我們也配備了一些人員，為一年中最繁忙的時期做好準備。

So that'll equal itself out as time goes forward.

因此，隨著時間的推移，這將達到平衡。

Okay.

好的。

And this next one on European demand.

下一個是根據歐洲的需求。

You mentioned obviously you had some down time but you also mentioned some weak demand.

您顯然提到了一些停機時間，但您也提到了一些疲軟的需求。

Just wondering what are you seeing as we exit the winter -- I know winter is going to be slow at Poland.

只是想知道當我們結束冬天時你會看到什麼——我知道波蘭的冬天會很緩慢。

Beyond that, what's your outlook over there?

除此之外，您對那裡的看法如何？

Growth in Poland is substantially stronger this year as compared to last year.

與去年相比，今年波蘭的成長明顯強勁。

And you might recall that last year in the first quarter was when the Latvian situation got resolved.

你可能還記得，去年第一季拉脫維亞局勢得到了解決。

We saw really, really strong order book in the first quarter.

我們在第一季看到了非常非常強勁的訂單。

The European economy, well, the economy in Poland in particular continues to grow and we expect strong demand.

歐洲經濟，特別是波蘭的經濟持續成長，我們預期需求強勁。

The pressure that we're seeing is really a function of imports and not only weakness in the Eurozone, but some carryover from what's going on in Eastern Europe.

我們所看到的壓力實際上是進口的函數，不僅是歐元區的疲軟，而且是東歐正在發生的事情的一些延續。

So we've seen some imports coming from neighboring countries that we hadn't seen before, which is putting pressure on prices and margins.

因此，我們看到了一些以前從未見過的來自鄰國的進口，這給價格和利潤帶來了壓力。

But we expect strong demand to continue.

但我們預計強勁的需求將持續下去。

The Polish economy continues to do better than most of the rest of the European economies or the Euro -- other countries in the Eurozone.

波蘭經濟持續表現優於大多數其他歐洲經濟體或歐元區其他國家。

And we don't see any reason for that to tail off.

我們認為這種情況沒有任何理由減弱。

What we'd like to see is less influence from imports and stronger margins.

我們希望看到進口的影響較小，利潤率也更高。

Okay.

好的。

Barbara, you touched upon the working capital.

芭芭拉，您談到了營運資金。

I was just wondering if I look at since the downturn, 2009 you generated quite a bit of cash from the working capital.

我只是想知道自 2009 年經濟低迷以來，你們是否從營運資金中獲得了大量現金。

You have spent almost $0.5 billion, or sorry $600 million in terms of working capital as you're growing the business.

在發展業務的過程中，您已經花費了近 5 億美元，或者抱歉，6 億美元的營運資金。

I'm just wondering how should we look at, because that doesn't -- your free cash flow, cash impact despite your earnings are improving.

我只是想知道我們應該如何看待，因為這不是——你的自由現金流、現金影響，儘管你的收入正在改善。

How should we look at this quarter I noticed that your revenue quarter-over-quarter was down $220 million.

我們該如何看待這個季度我注意到你們的營收季減了 2.2 億美元。

Year-over-year it was almost flattish but your working capital was a massive use of funds.

與去年同期相比，幾乎持平，但您的營運資金是大量資金的使用。

How should we look at over the next couple of years in terms of having some of that reverse back?

我們該如何看待未來幾年的逆轉？

Well, another factor affecting the first quarter was AP.

那麼，影響第一季的另一個因素是 AP。

If you look at the balance sheet, our payables are much lower.

如果你看一下資產負債表，我們的應付帳款要低很多。

Reflective of moving into the slower period.

反映了進入較慢時期的情況。

Inventory we did some building, as I said, to support higher business activity levels.

正如我所說，我們做了一些庫存建設，以支援更高的業務活動水準。

I mean, as we indicated, M&Ds had one of the strongest quarters in -- since the global financial crisis and a lot of the working capital is going to support the growth in M&D.

我的意思是，正如我們所指出的，自全球金融危機以來，M&D 經歷了最強勁的季度之一，大量營運資金將支持 M&D 的成長。

And that will liquidate fairly quickly.

這將很快清算。

But the other factor this specific quarter was just lower accounts payable and we have a number of scheduled payments in the current -- in the first quarter that affected that.

但這個特定季度的另一個因素是應付帳款減少，我們目前在第一季有許多預定付款，這影響了這一點。

We're still projecting that at some point we will have enough working capital to support the growth, market growth.

我們仍然預計，在某個時候我們將有足夠的營運資金來支持成長和市場成長。

And then you're going to start to see that cash turn and we're still forecasting positive free cash flow going forward.

然後你將開始看到現金週轉，我們仍然預測未來將出現正的自由現金流。

Okay.

好的。

Great.

偉大的。

Thank you very much.

非常感謝。

Our next question comes from Nathan Littlewood at Credit Suisse.

我們的下一個問題來自瑞士信貸銀行的內森·利特伍德。

Good morning, guys.

早上好傢伙。

Thanks for the opportunity.

感謝您提供的機會。

Just had a couple of --

剛剛喝了幾杯——

Good morning, Nathan.

早安，內森。

Good morning, morning.

早安，早安。

Just had a couple of questions for you, the first on your ferrous scrap purchase price for the Americas Mills.

我有幾個問題想問您，第一個問題是關於美洲工廠的黑色金屬廢料採購價格。

It was down I think $7 or $8 a ton quarter on quarter.

我認為每噸季度環比下降了 7 美元或 8 美元。

But if we look at the domestic assessment from CIU and the like they were down sort of $20, $25 a ton for your quarter.

但如果我們看一下 CIU 等機構的國內評估，季度價格每噸下降了 20 至 25 美元。

Just wondering I'm asking this as an engineer here, not an accountant, could you help me bridge the gap there?

只是想知道我是作為工程師而不是會計師來問這個問題的，你能幫我彌合那裡的差距嗎？

Was there something strange going on with scrap procurement costs?

廢品採購成本是否出現了奇怪的狀況？

I'll take a quick shot of that, Nathan.

我會快速拍攝一下，內森。

When you think about the numbers that you're comparing, there's some regional numbers as well that might be more reflective and comparative.

當您考慮要比較的數字時，還有一些區域數字可能更具反思性和可比性。

When you start looking at gross averages of scrap and then the mix within each of the regions, I think you can get some significant divergence and you'd have to be able to compare that to what scrap purchase prices were before.

當您開始查看廢鋼的總平均值以及每個地區的組合時，我認為您可能會發現一些顯著的差異，並且您必須能夠將其與先前的廢鋼採購價格進行比較。

We might have been purchasing more competitively.

我們的採購可能更具競爭力。

So on a quarter to quarter basis I don't get real concerned about that because there are a lot of averaging that's going on.

因此，在每個季度的基礎上，我並不真正擔心這一點，因為正在進行許多平均操作。

We're measuring our costs and need to be competitive in the markets that we're buying and selling in and feel like we're in a good place in that market.

我們正在衡量我們的成本，需要在我們買賣的市場中具有競爭力，並感覺到我們在該市場中處於有利地位。

But you want to comment on anything more?

但您還想發表更多評論嗎？

So I'm not sure that I answered that as an engineer or an accountant.

所以我不確定我是作為工程師還是會計師回答這個問題的。

Probably the latter.

大概是後者。

That's good.

那挺好的。

Thanks, Joe.

謝謝，喬。

The other one was just on international marketing International Marketing and Distribution.

另一門是關於國際行銷的國際行銷和分銷。

You indicated previously the that your expectations for a quarterly run rate there were about $13 million.

您之前表示，您對季度運行率的預期約為 1300 萬美元。

I guess I'm just curious about the sort of go-forward impact there from Australia.

我想我只是對澳洲的未來影響感到好奇。

You've shown us that for the November quarter that was worth about $2 million.

您已經向我們展示了 11 月季度的價值約為 200 萬美元。

So could we say that looking forward your expectations for IMD would be $13 million, plus the $2 million loss for 2015 total for that business?

那麼我們是否可以說，展望未來，您對 IMD 的期望為 1,300 萬美元，加上 2015 年該業務的 200 萬美元虧損總額？

Does that math make sense?

這個數學有意義嗎？

Nathan, I think that I would still at the current moment stay with the $13 million that we've guided.

Nathan，我認為目前我仍會保留我們指導的 1300 萬美元。

M&D has very lumpy quarters and we had a really good quarter this quarter.

M&D 的季度業績非常不穩定，但本季我們的業績非常好。

And the nature of the business is to take advantage when the markets are available and hot.

該業務的本質是在市場可用且火熱時利用。

And we certainly saw that in the first fiscal quarter.

我們在第一財季確實看到了這一點。

But right now I wouldn't be comfortable, given all the global uncertainty with raising that.

但現在我會感到不舒服，因為提出這個問題會帶來全球的不確定性。

Maybe with time we'd get more comfortable.

也許隨著時間的推移我們會變得更舒服。

Okay.

好的。

No problem.

沒問題。

Thanks very much, Barbara.

非常感謝，芭芭拉。

I'll turn it over.

我會把它翻過來。

Our next question comes from Brian Yu at Citi.

我們的下一個問題來自花旗銀行的 Brian Yu。

Thanks and Happy New Year, Joe, Barbara.

謝謝，新年快樂，喬，芭芭拉。

Happy New Year.

新年快樂。

Thanks, Brian.

謝謝，布萊恩。

To you as well.

你也是。

And good morning.

早安.

I had a question on rebar pricing.

我有一個關於螺紋鋼定價的問題。

I know you touched on this earlier in the call and commented how rebar imports are coming in at a definitely healthy clip, and yet we've seen prices be fairly resilient which is very different than what we're seeing in hot rolled coil.

我知道您在電話會議的早些時候談到了這一點，並評論了螺紋鋼進口量的絕對健康水平，但我們看到價格相當有彈性，這與我們在熱軋卷中看到的情況非常不同。

Couple questions along these lines.

沿著這些思路提出幾個問題。

One, any insight you could share with us on what's driving this divergence?

第一，對於造成這種分歧的原因，您有什麼見解可以與我們分享嗎？

And then two, going back to a question earlier about the fab, is there some cross subsidy between the two businesses or are these sales between the mills and your fab business occurring at market prices?

然後兩個，回到之前關於晶圓廠的問題，這兩家企業之間是否存在交叉補貼，或者工廠和您的晶圓廠業務之間的銷售是否按市場價格進行？

So let me take a stab at both of the questions.

那麼就讓我來回答一下這兩個問題。

The first is on the rebar pricing and the strength that we see.

第一個是關於螺紋鋼的定價和我們看到的實力。

We price according to what the market will accept.

我們根據市場接受的價格定價。

And we also have a downstream fabrication business, which is not subsidized by the mill operations.

我們還有下游製造業務，該業務不受工廠營運的補貼。

They're isn't a subsidy going either way.

無論哪種方式，它們都不是補貼。

It's basically all at market prices.

基本上都是以市價。

So when we see initiatives, from Turkey in particular, to move a lot of product, I think that's without regard to the market.

因此，當我們看到（特別是來自土耳其）轉移大量產品的舉措時，我認為這沒有考慮到市場。

That's more based on a cost plus pricing formula.

這更多是基於成本加成定價公式。

That's my opinion.

這是我的意見。

And so we don't understand why someone would come into the market well below market pricing, other than that they're moving to dump steel.

因此，我們不明白為什麼有人會以遠低於市場價格的價格進入市場，除了他們正在傾銷鋼鐵之外。

And we made our case and the case was reviewed and it was found to be negligible or almost de minimis.

我們提出了自己的主張，並對案件進行了審查，發現其影響可以忽略不計或幾乎微乎其微。

So there's nothing we can do about that.

所以我們對此無能為力。

But we certainly don't understand the economics of buying scrap from North America, taking it to Turkey, and bringing it back and selling it well below market prices.

但我們當然不了解從北美購買廢料，將其運往土耳其，然後運回並以遠低於市場價格的價格出售的經濟原理。

So it is what it is.

所以事情就是這樣。

Better to ask that question of them than us.

這個問題問他們比問我們更好。

We don't know how they price their product.

我們不知道他們如何定價他們的產品。

But as far as that second component on subsidy, there is no subsidy.

但就補貼的第二部分而言，沒有補貼。

So we see strong demand for construction products and consumption is up overall.

因此，我們看到對建築產品的強勁需求，消費整體上升。

And the overhang is what I will call marginally priced rebar in the market that comes and flows, it ebbs and flows, but it's not a nuisance.

懸而未決的東西就是我所說的市場上邊際定價的螺紋鋼，它來來去去，有起有落，但這並不令人討厭。

I guess I'm still kind of confused why it's not having the same type of impact on the US market like what we're seeing in hot rolled coil.

我想我仍然有點困惑為什麼它沒有像我們在熱軋卷中看到的那樣對美國市場產生相同的影響。

We are seeing volumes coming in, especially with where you guys are located towards the south.

我們看到大量的進來，尤其是你們位於南部的地方。

I would figure that imports would have a greater impact.

我認為進口會產生更大的影響。

But obviously not the case.

但顯然情況並非如此。

I'm not sure if you can shed any light on that.

我不確定你是否能解釋這一點。

Yes, I don't know that there's much more I can share than what I just shared with you.

是的，我不知道除了我剛才與你分享的內容之外，我還能分享更多。

Okay.

好的。

And then the other question I've got is just on the scrap market.

我的另一個問題是關於廢品市場的。

It did seem like prices were weakening and now they're starting to tick up a bit.

價格似乎確實在走軟，現在開始略有上漲。

Would you attribute that just to typical seasonality, given the constraint on flows?

考慮到流量的限制，您是否會將其歸因於典型的季節性？

And as we exit winter if you guys do any kind of trading on scrap backs towards the -- is the international market demand for US material weak enough where we should see scrap prices begin to drop after the seasonal impact goes away?

當我們結束冬季時，如果你們對廢鋼進行任何形式的交易，國際市場對美國材料的需求是否足夠疲軟，我們應該看到廢鋼價格在季節性影響消失後開始下跌？

As you know, Brian, there's lots of seasonality in scrap and scrap purchasing.

如你所知，布萊恩，廢品和廢品採購有很多季節性。

So we'll see fluctuations just based on that.

所以我們會看到基於此的波動。

A bigger driver in scrap pricing I think these days is the influence of export product.

我認為目前廢鋼定價的一個更大驅動因素是出口產品的影響。

And I can only tell you what I've read, is that there appears to be a little more demand for exported scrap product.

我只能告訴你我讀到的情況是，對出口廢品的需求似乎增加。

We ourselves don't heavily participate in that.

我們自己並沒有大量參與其中。

We're impacted by it, but we don't see it directly.

我們受到它的影響，但我們沒有直接看到它。

It's hard to comment on how good that market may or may not be.

很難評論這個市場的好壞。

We'll see how the current month settles out.

我們將看看本月的情況如何。

But it doesn't feel a lot different than what we've been seeing the last few months.

但這與我們過去幾個月看到的情況並沒有太大不同。

Okay.

好的。

Thanks.

謝謝。

Next question comes from Phil Gibbs, KeyBanc Capital Markets.

下一個問題來自 KeyBanc Capital Markets 的 Phil Gibbs。

Good morning.

早安.

Good morning, Phil.

早上好，菲爾。

Good morning, Phil.

早上好，菲爾。

Just had a general question on the backlog in the US business, just how that may be looking relative to last year and maybe versus the August quarter?

剛剛有一個關於美國業務積壓的一般性問題，與去年以及八月季度相比，情況如何？

Let me take a look here, Phil.

讓我看看這裡，菲爾。

The fab backlog, if you look at it compared to a year ago, it's up over 5%.

如果與一年前相比，晶圓廠積壓訂單增加了 5% 以上。

And it's up marginally over the fourth quarter, which is a really good sign going into the seasonally slower period of the year.

第四季略有上升，這是進入今年季節性放緩時期的一個非常好的跡象。

What are you seeing from a regional perspective across the sunbelt as far as Texas, California, et cetera?

從整個陽光地帶（遠至德克薩斯州、加利福尼亞州等）的區域角度來看，您看到了什麼？

What's stronger?

什麼更強？

What's weaker?

什麼比較弱？

Sort of what's the picture look like to you guys right now?

現在你們覺得這張照片是什麼樣子的呢？

I think if you -- if we were talking a year ago, we would have said Texas continues to be strong, California was picking up and the Southeast was the weaker market for us.

我想，如果我們一年前談論的話，我們會說德克薩斯州繼續強勁，加州正在復蘇，而東南部市場對我們來說較弱。

I think we're seeing good demand broadly across all three regions at this point in time.

我認為目前我們在所有三個地區都看到了廣泛的良好需求。

California continues to pick up momentum.

加州繼續保持強勁勢頭。

We're now starting to see more activity in Southern California where it was previously being driven out of activity in Northern California.

我們現在開始在南加州看到更多的活動，而之前在北加州的活動被趕出了這裡。

And we're seeing pretty good activity levels in the Southeast.

我們看到東南部的活動量相當不錯。

And continue to see strong demand in the Texas market.

並繼續看到德克薩斯州市場的強勁需求。

I appreciate that.

我很感激。

And just a housekeeping question, Barbara, as far as what the -- I'm not going to ask you for LIFO by all the segments, just curious as to what it was in the Mills division in particular?

只是一個內務問題，芭芭拉，至於什麼——我不會問你所有部門的後進先出法，只是好奇米爾斯部門具體是什麼？

And if you have a view on what the tax rate should look like here?

如果您對這裡的稅率有什麼看法？

Okay.

好的。

The Mills, Americas Mills had a LIFO income of $2.7 million for the quarter.

The Mills, Americas Mills 本季的 LIFO 收入為 270 萬美元。

And as far as the tax rate, it does depend somewhat on income in foreign jurisdictions where we enjoy a lower tax rate.

就稅率而言，它確實在一定程度上取決於我們享受較低稅率的外國司法管轄區的收入。

But we're projecting a tax rate somewhere in the 30% to 32% for the year.

但我們預計今年的稅率將在 30% 到 32% 之間。

I appreciate it.

我很感激。

Thank you very much.

非常感謝。

Thank you, Phil.

謝謝你，菲爾。

Our next question comes from Aldo Mazzaferro at Macquarie.

我們的下一個問題來自麥格理的阿爾多·馬扎費羅。

Good morning and Happy New Year.

早安，新年快樂。

Happy New Year, Aldo.

新年快樂，奧爾多。

I was wondering, just a couple of questions on the production rate that you may have seen in the quarter for your rebar plants, Joe.

喬，我想知道關於您本季螺紋鋼工廠生產率的幾個問題。

Could you give us a ballpark?

你能給我們一個大概的狀況嗎？

Are you 80% or above or below that or somewhere?

你是 80% 或高於或低於這個值還是某個地方？

Could you give us a little hint as to where you're operating at?

您能給我們一些關於您在哪裡運作的提示嗎？

That corollary is somewhat like what Barbara described on the fab side of the business.

這個推論有點像芭芭拉在企業的晶圓廠所描述的那樣。

Where we've seen the softest demand in production rates had been in the East Coast and our South Carolina operations.

我們看到生產力需求最疲軟的是東海岸和南卡羅來納州的業務。

And for that matter in Birmingham as well.

伯明翰也是如此。

They're operating at better rates.

他們的營運效率更高。

There's always opportunity for us to expand our production capability, Aldo, with a better mix and shorter -- longer cycles.

奧爾多，我們總是有機會透過更好的組合和更短、更長的週期來擴大我們的生產能力。

We haven't really gotten to that point.

我們還沒有真正達到這一點。

So that potential exists across the board.

因此，這種潛力是全面存在的。

We're operating at 80% plus in each of our segments, best way to describe it.

我們每個細分市場的營運率都在 80% 以上，這是最好的描述方式。

A little bit less so still in the Eastern Region.

東區的情況還是稍微少一點。

And Joe, could you comment on how you see inventories, both in rebar you made downstream of your mill and also inventories that you see in the scrap market, could you comment on how you see the levels there?

喬，您能否評論一下您如何看待庫存，包括您在工廠下游生產的螺紋鋼以及您在廢鋼市場上看到的庫存，您能否評論一下您如何看待那裡的水平？

Well, on the rebar side of it, are you talking about rebar inventories in general or our own inventory levels?

那麼，在螺紋鋼方面，您是在談論整體螺紋鋼庫存還是我們自己的庫存水準？

No, in general.

不，一般來說。

It's very hard to get specific inventory numbers.

很難獲得具體的庫存數量。

And with all the imports in here and a pretty good, decent operating rate domestically and prices holding together, maybe there isn't a big inventory overhang.

由於這裡有所有進口產品，而且國內開工率相當不錯，而且價格保持穩定，也許不會出現大的庫存積壓。

I'm just wondering what you think in terms of is there more oversupply of rebar in the market or are we pretty balanced do you think despite the high imports?

我只是想知道您對市場上螺紋鋼供應過剩的看法如何，還是儘管進口量很高，您認為我們是否相當平衡？

I'd say that it's fairly balanced.

我想說的是，這是相當平衡的。

There are months for example when things will flex and get a little bit out of whack.

例如，有幾個月事情會發生變化並變得有點不正常。

But I think product moves through the system pretty quickly.

但我認為產品在系統中的移動速度相當快。

Rebar, no one wants to be sitting and speculating when there's volatility, like there has been.

螺紋鋼，沒有人願意在出現波動時坐下來投機，就像以前一樣。

So, I'm not real concerned about downstream inventory and maybe that's -- maybe I'm being Pollyannaish about it.

所以，我並不真正擔心下游庫存，也許我對此過於樂觀了。

We haven't seen real swings in inventory that concern us, other than when couple boats arrive at the same time.

除了幾艘船同時到達之外，我們還沒有看到令我們擔憂的庫存真正波動。

But that seems to be getting its way into the system and working its way through fairly quickly.

但這似乎正在進入系統並很快完成。

On the scrap side of it, if the question is whether or not there's good of movement of scrap material, if that's what you're looking for or availability, we're not seeing huge flow problems.

在廢料方面，如果問題是廢料的流動是否良好，如果這就是您正在尋找的或可用性，那麼我們不會看到巨大的流動問題。

But certainly lower prices ultimately will lead the to some flow issues and ultimately will drive prices back up.

但肯定的是，較低的價格最終會導致一些流量問題，最終推動價格回升。

There hasn't been a dearth of scrap or anything like that.

廢品之類的東西並不缺乏。

Availability is good.

可用性良好。

The mills are not starving yet for scrap?

工廠還沒有急需廢鋼嗎？

No.

不。

But the supplies have drifted down a little bit would you say in the last few months?

但在過去的幾個月裡，供應量是否有所下降？

I expect they have a little bit, but there might be those that have sat on inventory and speculated on inventory expecting it to go up, for example, after the first of the year, which is seasonally what happens.

我預計他們會有一點，但可能有些人持有庫存並推測庫存預計會增加，例如，在今年第一天之後，這是季節性發生的情況。

So if that doesn't happen, then maybe there will be some move to move inventory in the ensuing weeks or months.

因此，如果這種情況沒有發生，那麼在接下來的幾週或幾個月內可能會採取一些轉移庫存的措施。

It's an interesting thing to watch right now, Aldo.

奧爾多，現在觀看這是一件有趣的事。

I'll say.

我會說。

One final question, Joe.

最後一個問題，喬。

Can you categorize a little bit about how much of your overall backlog -- I know it's probably hard, but with steel and fab and other operations, how much of it might be related to inventory -- I'm sorry, energy related projects?

您能否對總體積壓訂單的數量進行一些分類——我知道這可能很難，但是對於鋼鐵和工廠以及其他業務，其中有多少可能與庫存有關——對不起，能源相關項目？

I know fabrication could be energy, could be a lot of other things.

我知道製造可能是能源，也可能是很多其他東西。

Could you say a little bit about that, about how you're exposed to energy through fab and through steel bars and things?

您能談談您是如何透過工廠、鋼筋等接觸到能源的嗎？

Aldo, we took a look at that and our direct -- if you took a direct specific products, like tubular, SBQ, it's 10% or less.

Aldo，我們研究了這一點以及我們的直接產品——如果您採用直接的特定產品，例如管狀、SBQ，則為 10% 或更少。

I think the question that we all wrestle is there a follow-on effect to a prolonged downturn in energy price that would then spill over into industrial and construction activity.

我認為我們大家都在爭論的問題是，能源價格長期低迷是否會產生後續影響，進而波及工業和建築活動。

And as Joe pointed out earlier, we see there's a positive side to this lower energy price and that's increase in disposable income, which could fuel the economy in other ways that could be -- dilute the effect of what's going on.

正如喬早些時候指出的那樣，我們看到能源價格下降有積極的一面，那就是可支配收入的增加，這可能會以其他方式刺激經濟——削弱正在發生的事情的影響。

So right now we're looking at it carefully and studying it.

所以現在我們正在仔細地觀察和研究它。

But as far as specific products, it's not that great.

但就具體產品而言，情況並不是那麼好。

Aldo, I don't know that it's fact or not.

奧爾多，我不知道這是不是事實。

Just report that I heard $0.01 in gasoline price reduction is equivalent to $1 billion in savings.

只是報告一下，我聽說汽油價格降低 0.01 美元相當於節省 10 億美元。

That's a lot of money.

那是很多錢。

And going back to normal patterns for what drives nonresidential construction demand, oftentimes is led by residential.

回到驅動非住宅建築需求的正常模式，通常是由住宅帶動的。

With more disposable income, that's the kind of growth that ultimately spurs nonresidential, as infrastructure needs to be built to support those kinds of operations.

隨著可支配收入的增加，這種成長最終會刺激非住宅業務，因為需要建造基礎設施來支援此類業務。

I wouldn't lose sight of what Barbara said either about the ability to maybe negotiate something and a Congress that's trying to find a way to work together on the construction side of it and highway programs.

我不會忽視芭芭拉所說的關於可能進行談判的能力以及國會試圖找到一種在建設方面和高速公路項目上合作的方法。

So we'll see what happens after the Congress convenes today.

因此，我們將看看今天國會召開後會發生什麼。

But at some point what's been freed up in the way of energy prices could be an opening to raise taxes on energy consumption in order to fund the infrastructure that we all know is so badly needed.

但到了某個時候，能源價格釋放出來的東西可能會成為提高能源消費稅的契機，以便為我們都知道急需的基礎設施提供資金。

Well, thanks very much.

嗯，非常感謝。

Okay.

好的。

Thank you, Aldo.

謝謝你，阿爾多。

The next question comes from Andrew Lane at Morningstar.

下一個問題來自晨星公司的安德魯·萊恩。

Good morning and Happy New Year.

早安，新年快樂。

Good morning, Happy New Year.

早安，新年快樂。

Just one question here.

這裡只有一個問題。

You've discussed the impact of rising import volumes and I'd be curious to hear any comments you'd have on how the October rebar trade case determinations has changed the texture of import volumes?

您已經討論了進口量上升的影響，我很想聽聽您對 10 月份螺紋鋼貿易案件的裁決如何改變進口量結構有何評論？

It looks like import volumes from Turkey were down significantly in November.

11 月來自土耳其的進口量似乎大幅下降。

Even though Turkish exporters were effectively given the green light.

儘管土耳其出口商實際上獲得了綠燈。

Are you seeing major upticks in rebar volumes from any other specific countries of note?

您是否發現其他特定國家的螺紋鋼產量大幅上升？

No, the Turks are dominating.

不，土耳其人占主導地位。

The import statistics as opposed to the market data that we have and what's been negotiated, what's on the water, what's coming, it's mostly Turkish.

進口統計數據與我們擁有的市場數據以及已經談判的數據、即將發生的數據、即將發生的數據相反，主要是土耳其的數據。

There have been some other sources that have come into the market, but it's dominated by the Turks.

還有一些其他來源進入市場，但主要由土耳其人主導。

So along those lines, is your -- are your operations in California a little better insulated from those volumes than the rest of your geographic exposure in the US?

因此，沿著這些思路，您在加州的業務是否比您在美國其他地區的業務更能免受這些交易量的影響？

From Turkish in a manner of speaking, but sometimes the pricing is so aggressive on the Turks it does have a carryover effect.

從某種意義上說，來自土耳其，但有時土耳其人的定價如此激進，確實會產生遺留效應。

But there are other sources that hit the West Coast.

但還有其他來源襲擊了西海岸。

So I wouldn't call any of our markets completely insulated, but certainly for the Turks it's a longer reach to get to the West Coast market.

因此，我不會稱我們的任何市場完全隔離，但對於土耳其人來說，進入西海岸市場的距離肯定更長。

Okay.

好的。

Great.

偉大的。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Okay.

好的。

Thank you, Andrew.

謝謝你，安德魯。

The next question comes from Charles Bradford of Bradford Research.

下一個問題來自布拉德福德研究中心的查爾斯·布拉德福德。

Good morning.

早安.

Good morning, Chuck.

早上好，查克。

Couple questions.

幾個問題。

First of all, a year ago when we had that pretty bad winter weather the price of electricity and natural gas just soared.

首先，一年前，當我們經歷了一個非常糟糕的冬季天氣時，電力和天然氣的價格就飆升了。

Have you seen any signs of that yet or is it just back to normal?

您是否已經看到任何跡像或只是恢復正常了？

No signs of that whatsoever.

沒有任何跡象。

Last year we were impacted, particularly on the East Coast, by some heavy storms and ice storms, were impacted here in Texas as well in December.

去年，我們受到了一些強烈風暴和冰暴的影響，特別是在東海岸，12 月德克薩斯州也受到了影響。

And the weather hasn't been that terribly bad.

而且天氣也沒有那麼糟。

In fact, it's been pretty good.

事實上，已經相當不錯了。

So, so far, no, but that doesn't mean that we won't see something before the quarter's out.

所以，到目前為止，還沒有，但這並不意味著我們在本季結束之前不會看到任何東西。

I guess they're getting snow in the Midwest today.

我猜今天中西部地區會下雪。

But otherwise it's been a pretty tame winter.

但除此之外，這是一個相當溫和的冬天。

I'm more worried about frankly, the price of electricity.

坦白說，我更擔心的是電價。

Because we can track the gas pretty easily.

因為我們可以輕易地追蹤氣體。

But, we'll use a lot of electricity.

但是，我們會使用大量的電力。

Chuck, for us the electricity is availability.

查克，對我們來說，電力是可用的。

Utilities need to the take care of the private sector, well the public sector, that means that we get squeezed.

公用事業公司需要照顧私營部門，以及公共部門，這意味著我們受到擠壓。

That's what happened to us last year in South Carolina.

這就是我們去年在南卡羅來納州發生的事情。

We get curtailed.

我們受到限制。

And so that's something that we're subjected to which affects our electricity cost and availability.

因此，這就是我們所面臨的問題，它會影響我們的電力成本和可用性。

So I wasn't talking about gas as much as I was about electricity and availability.

因此，我談論的不是天然氣，而是電力和可用性。

Understood.

明白了。

About a year and-a-half ago you gave a speech at a pipe distributors conference with a pretty long list of new capacity coming online.

大約一年半前，您在管道分銷商會議上發表了演講，其中列出了一份相當長的即將上線的新產能清單。

Do you have any sense how much of that capacity has come online and whether US Steel's announcement today of a big cutback at Lorraine is more to do with the price of energy as they said or is it just new supply?

您是否知道其中有多少產能已上線，以及美國鋼鐵公司今天宣布的洛林大幅減產是否更多地與他們所說的能源價格有關，還是只是新的供應？

I was going to decline anything I said a year and-a-half ago.

我本來打算拒絕一年半前所說的一切。

Understood.

明白了。

As far as tubular capacity, there are all kinds of reports about those projects still coming onstream and being strong.

就管道產能而言，有各種報道稱這些項目仍在投產且表現強勁。

But as far as US Steel's decision to lay off and I think I read in March and May, that's a better question for Mario and the US Steel people and what they're seeing in the market.

但就美國鋼鐵公司的裁員決定而言，我想我在三月和五月讀到過，這對馬裡奧和美國鋼鐵公司的員工以及他們在市場上看到的情況來說是一個更好的問題。

Understood.

明白了。

Thank you very much.

非常感謝。

Okay.

好的。

Thanks, Chuck.

謝謝，查克。

(Operator Instructions).

（操作員說明）。

And our next question comes from Phil Gibbs at KeyBanc Capital Markets.

我們的下一個問題來自 KeyBanc Capital Markets 的 Phil Gibbs。

Barbara, I just had a question on the SG&A side as it related to the Australian distribution assets, if you could give us an idea about how much of the SG&A was tied up in that line last year?

芭芭拉，我剛剛有一個關於 SG&A 方面的問題，因為它與澳大利亞分銷資產有關，您能否告訴我們去年有多少 SG&A 與該行相關？

Boy, I -- Phil, I'd probably have to take that offline and get back to you, because there'll be some portion of the SG&A that will remain for our trading operations in Southeast Asia.

天哪，我——菲爾，我可能不得不把這個離線然後再回复你，因為SG＆A的一部分將保留給我們在東南亞的交易業務。

But we can -- and we're still candidly working through that, how much goes and how much is required to support the remaining activity in the region.

但我們可以——而且我們仍在坦誠地討論支持該地區剩餘活動的資金量和需要量。

So we haven't put the pen down yet on that.

所以我們還沒有就此放下筆。

I'd be happy to look at it and give you some --

我很樂意看看並給你一些——

Okay.

好的。

I wasn't sure if you addressed this or not because I missed a portion of the call, but did you talk about whether or not you were winding down those assets or whether or not you intended to sell them or is it still -- or is that still a bit up in the air?

我不確定你是否提到了這個問題，因為我錯過了部分電話會議，但你是否談論過你是否正在逐步減少這些資產，或者你是否打算出售它們，或者仍然是——或者這還有點懸而未決嗎？

Well, in order to drop it down to discontinued operations, we need to meet certain criteria and we are holding them for sale.

好吧，為了將其歸類為停產業務，我們需要滿足某些標準，並且我們將其持有以供出售。

And we have started a process.

我們已經開始了一個過程。

That process pretty much came to a slow pace, if not shut down as we approached the holidays.

當我們接近假期時，這個過程即使沒有停止，也幾乎進展緩慢。

And as you know, in Australia they take extended holidays this time of year because it's their summertime.

如您所知，在澳大利亞，他們每年的這個時候都會延長假期，因為這是他們的夏天。

And so as soon as folks return to work, we expect to pick up the process in earnest.

因此，一旦人們重返工作崗位，我們希望認真開始這個過程。

And so far there is interest level for those assets and it would definitely be our intent to sell those assets rather than wind down.

到目前為止，這些資產的利息水平很高，我們肯定會打算出售這些資產而不是逐步減少。

Okay.

好的。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Thank you, Phil.

謝謝你，菲爾。

Okay.

好的。

At this time, there appear to be no further questions.

此時，似乎沒有其他問題了。

Mr. Alvarado, I'll now turn the call back over to you.

阿爾瓦拉多先生，我現在將電話轉回給您。

Well, thank you everyone for joining us on today's conference call.

好的，感謝大家參加今天的電話會議。

We certainly look forward to speaking with many of you during our investor visits in the coming weeks.

我們當然期待在未來幾週的投資者訪問期間與你們中的許多人交談。

And look forward to reporting our second quarter results only two months from now in March.

並期待在距現在僅兩個月的三月報告我們的第二季業績。

So look forward to talking with you all soon.

因此，期待盡快與大家交談。

Thank you very much.

非常感謝。

This concludes today's Commercial Metals Company conference call.

今天的商業金屬公司電話會議到此結束。

You may now disconnect.

您現在可以斷開連線。