The true cost of raw materials

It has been described as the worst downturn to hit the tanning industry since late 2008 and early 2009. Yet somehow this “crisis” feels a lot different. Rather than another part of the economy caught up in a global recession as it was then, this feels a bit more self-inflicted. The first half of 2015 will not go down as a “vintage” like it did in 2013-14. 

At the ICHSLTA cocktail reception in Hong Kong late March, I was involved in a conversation with two traders from Australia and the U.S. The Australian said: “the U.S meat packers took the market too high last year, they got too greedy and this will have consequences in the future”. I nodded in agreement but did not take on board what was really being said. Now it's clear.