During the final two presidential debates of 2016, the candidates broadly discussed trade. In a brief exchange, Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton asserted that the dumping of steel and steel products from China, Japan, and South Korea into US markets has damaged the domestic steel industry.

Now that he is the President-elect, Trump’s plans for the beginning of his presidential term include tenets that reflect these concerns, such as withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership and working with the Secretary of Commerce to end unfair trade. 

Long reliant on advertisements as their primary source of revenue, internet publishers, broadcasters, and search engine providers face mounting challenges to their ad-supported business models.

In particular, the rising use of ad blockers – software programs that prevent internet ads from being displayed – by consumers is threatening to undermine the industry’s key source of revenue.

In October 2016, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that provinces must develop a plan to reduce carbon emissions by 2018 or face a C$10 tax per ton of emissions. This figure would increase by C$10 per ton each year until 2022, when emissions would be priced at C$50 per ton. This tax will only be imposed if provincial leaders fail to come up with a plan to limit emissions of their own.

The new carbon pricing scheme is part of the government’s effort to comply with the Paris agreement. Signed earlier this year, the agreement aims to limit the global temperature increase this century to less than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. While further reductions will be needed for Canada to fully comply with its international commitment, the proposed carbon pricing scheme is seen as an important first step.

This month’s passing of the Kigali Accord marks a significant milestone in the development of the global HVAC/R industry. Signed by nearly 200 Montreal Protocol countries, the Kigali Accord represents a global commitment to combat climate change and, if successful, will result in the reduction of the equivalent of 70 billion tons of carbon dioxide between 2020 and 2050.

By singling out one type of refrigerant, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), the Kigali Accord also presents a substantial challenge to both HVAC/R equipment manufacturers and users. 

Design trends in nonresidential buildings are increasingly making energy efficiency and environmental friendliness a priority. In few markets is this more evident than in the commercial window and door market. 

How is the commercial market different from the residential market?

The residential market is more directly impacted by energy standards, such as those of the ENERGY STAR program. These are regularly updated and often come with federal tax breaks for homeowners. Additionally, homeowners immediately benefit from the energy bill savings and more comfortable indoor environments associated with efficient windows and doors. 

The recent announcement from Shaw Industries that it intends to acquire USFloors demonstrates the increasing demand for wood-plastic composite (WPC) flooring in the US.

WPC flooring — which consists of luxury vinyl tile (LVT) with a WPC core that serves as a backing — was introduced to the US by USFloors in 2013. This flooring’s attractive appearance and durability caused it to quickly gain acceptance among interior designers and homeowners. Seeking to capitalize on its popularity, several other hard surface flooring manufacturers developed their own lines of WPC flooring. 

Baseball managers have long kept tabs on their star players to make sure they stayed ready and rested for the big series.

Back in 1892, for example, when the Cleveland Spiders played the Boston Beaneaters in what was then called the World’s Championship Series, their star pitcher was Cy Young. Young was generally clean living, but he would occasionally get up early to go hunting for wild turkey in nearby woods, a potentially troublesome activity his manager had to watch out for.

Unsanctioned hunting is less of an issue in the Major Leagues now. Today, however, a manager has to make sure his starters don’t injure themselves by fiddling with a drone.

Homeowners are remodeling again. They are on the lookout for products that compete with traditional high-end materials but come with a mid-range price tag. The underlying strength of the US housing market and the rising valuations of people’s homes are supporting robust activity in residential improvement, repair and remodeling.

This fact is underscored by the recent earnings of several big-box/DIY retail chains like Lowe’s and Home Depot. Home Depot reported in August that comparable (same store) sales rose by 4.7% in Q2 2016 over the same period in 2015 [1], and Lowe’s reported a similar 4.0% rise for its Q2 same store sales over 2015 [2]. Both stores expect full-year same store sales growth for 2016 to range between 4.4% and 4.9% as compared to the latest US Federal Reserve estimate of 2016 growth of approximately 2.0% [3]. Home Depot’s CEO, Craig Menear, specifically called out generally rising home valuations as the basis for his company’s optimism going forward regarding sales growth and overall residential renovation spending.

The corrugated box. The wood crate. The five-gallon pail. These products have been used to ship and store food ever since we started sending it further than the local farm stand. But another option is gaining popularity — reusable bulk containers.

Reusable totes and crates are already commonly used in applications like motor vehicle manufacturing and assembly due to the long-term cost savings of container reuse.

However, reusable bulk systems are now seeing wider adoption in food applications, such as for the transport and display of fresh produce or baked goods. Where you used to see a wood crate or a printed corrugated box, plastic containers are gaining speed, especially for large volume users who are looking to minimize waste and promote environmentally friendly practices.

Tempur-Sealy International, a leading manufacturer of sleep products such as mattresses and foundations, received a rather rude wake-up call September 28. Tempur-Sealy’s shares (NYSE:TPX) fell over 20% that morning after the company announced that it expected full year sales to decline between 1% and 3% from 2015 levels. While Tempur-Sealy cited lower-than-expected third quarter sales for the revision, the company did not provide an explanation for that decline.

Competing manufacturer Select Comfort Corporation’s stock price (NASDAQ:SCSS) also fell on the news, suggesting that investors are concerned about the outlook of the broader industry.