The Decisive Podcast: Insights and analysis to empower confident decision-making.

In this episode of The Decisive Podcast, host Kristen Hallam is joined by S&P Global Market Intelligence economist Yan Hoong for an outlook on the electronics and semiconductor landscape through 2026—taken from a March 12 client webinar. 
Yan explains why memory remains a big source of procurement and pricing anxiety, with tightness persisting in both advanced and conventional memory as suppliers shift capacity toward higher-end products. Yan unpacks how this constraint is already spilling into downstream categories like computers and communications equipment, and why price pressure could linger until new capacity meaningfully comes online in late 2027 to 2028. 
The conversation also broadens beyond AI hype: while AI and data centers continue to pull demand (especially for high-bandwidth memory and advanced DRAM), Yan points to a gradual recovery in the broader electronics cycle, with mixed signals across end markets. Aerospace and defense and AI-led infrastructure stand out as growth areas, while consumer electronics and automotive remain softer, reinforced by slowing light vehicle production and divergent PMI new order trends. 
Finally, Yan breaks down the January 2026 Section 232 tariff announcement, outlining how its pricing impact on US semiconductors may be limited due to narrow scope and broad exemptions for domestic use, with exposure more concentrated in re-export pathways. The episode closes by connecting pricing dynamics across regions—highlighting how memory-heavy supply chains are driving sharper producer price escalation in places like South Korea—while legacy components remain comparatively stable.
More S&P Global Market Intelligence Content:
Electronics Supply Chain Outlook
Click here for our special report on the impact of the Middle East war on commodity prices
Click here to access our webinar on powering AI infrastructure in a volatile world
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Commodity Price Watch Monthly (full report)
Purchasing Environment
US tariff plans
Credits:
Host: Kristen Hallam
Guest: Yan Hoong
Produced By: Debbie Taylor, Kristen Hallam
Edited By: Marz Marcello
Published With Assistance From: Sophie Carr, Feranmi Adeoshun

In the first episode of season 6 of The Decisive podcast, S&P Global Market Intelligence's Jason Kaplan unpacks why 2026 is shaping up as a "risk-on" commodities environment—with steady but subdued global growth, rising volatility, and a deepening flight to safety that's pushing risk premiums across key markets.
Jason, a senior economist in the Pricing and Purchasing team, connects macroeconomic signals to real-world pricing and trade flows, including how tariffs and regionalization are re-splitting markets after years of prices moving in lockstep. With a year of tariff data now visible, Jason details how Section 232-era aluminum tariffs and downstream copper-product tariffs are showing up in U.S. prices, collapsing imports, and widening regional differentials—with a caveat that the full cost burden for U.S. manufacturers may still be ahead.
On the metals side, the episode dives into copper's structurally tight supply picture, the unique stress points in aluminum's midstream, and the U.S. Midwest premium, plus what's driving turning points in nickel, tin, and zinc. 
Finally, recorded just as geopolitical tensions escalated, Jason discusses why the published forecast does not yet fully incorporate the Iranian conflict—and what could change as updated macro assumptions are released, including particular sensitivity for Gulf-linked aluminum supply risks.
More S&P Global Market Intelligence Content:
Commodity Price Watch Monthly: March 2026
US resin shippers look to tap new customers amid Iran war
Click here to subscribe to our Supply Chain Essentials newsletter.
For S&P Global subscribers (login required):
Commodity Price Watch Monthly (full report)
Purchasing Environment
US tariff plans
Credits:
Host: Kristen Hallam
Guest: Jason Kaplan
Produced By: Debbie Taylor, Kristen Hallam
Edited By: Marz Marcello
Published With Assistance From: Sophie Carr, Feranmi Adeoshun

In our last episode of Season 5, host Kristen Hallam sits down with Chris Rogers, S&P Global Market Intelligence's head of supply chain research, to analyze the moments when supply chains gets stressed—and the playbooks that keep goods moving anyway.
From ongoing Red Sea security disruptions that forced ocean carriers to reroute around the Cape of Good Hope, reshaping transit times, capacity, and cost, to the more everyday shocks that ripple through transportation networks, this episode explores what resilience looks like when it's operational—not aspirational.
Chris discusses how leading supply chain teams respond under pressure with creative routing, smarter inventory positioning, and faster decision cycles, and why resilience today is less about a single "backup plan" and more about building options: diversified sourcing, flexible modes, and contracts designed for uncertainty. 
Along the way, we translate hard-won lessons into practical best practices—how to stress-test logistics networks, where agility creates the most value, and how resilient organizations balance service, cost, and risk without overcorrecting.
More S&P Global Market Intelligence Content:
Picture This: India Plans New Smartphone Supply Chain Incentives
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Supply Chain Edge: Tracing Middle East supply chain dependencies, investigating new corridors, tracking CHPIs
Moving from price to shortages: Regional supply chain exposures to Middle East conflict
US tariff plans
Credits:
Host: Kristen Hallam
Guest: Chris Rogers
Produced By: Kristen Hallam
Edited By: Marz Marcello
Published With Assistance From: Sophie Carr, Feranmi Adeoshun

As the global transition to clean energy, advanced technology, and artificial intelligence accelerates, the demand for critical minerals—including copper, lithium, and rare earth elements—is reshaping supply chains and intensifying geopolitical competition. In this episode of The Decisive Podcast, host Kristen Hallam leads a discussion with S&P Global Market Intelligence experts to examine the evolving landscape of critical minerals.
The panel explores how changing definitions, trade flows, and strategic stockpiling are influencing both businesses and governments worldwide. Senior Supply Chain Analyst Eric Oak discusses the complexities of critical mineral classifications and shifting global trade patterns. Senior Economist Jason Kaplan provides insight into the tightening supply-demand balance for copper, price volatility, and procurement strategies. Carla Selman, Head of Latin America Country Risk, analyzes Latin America's strategic role in the minerals sector and the impact of regional politics and alliances with the US and China. Economist David Vagenknecht offers a European perspective, focusing on the EU's ambitions for strategic autonomy, challenges in domestic processing, and the balance between environmental leadership and resource security.
This episode delivers actionable insights for business leaders, investors, and policymakers on building resilient supply chains, anticipating market shifts, and navigating the geopolitical dynamics shaping the future of critical minerals. 
More S&P Global Market Intelligence Content:
Commodity Price Watch: March 2026
Global Economic Outlook: March 2026
Click here to subscribe to our Supply Chain Essentials newsletter.
For S&P Global subscribers (login required):
Commodity Price Watch Monthly (full report)
Latin America's position in the critical minerals supply chain
2026: The age of agility
Credits:
Host: Kristen Hallam
Guests: Eric Oak, Jason Kaplan, Carla Selman, David Vagenknecht
Produced By: Debbie Taylor, Kristen Hallam
Edited By: Marz Marcello
Published With Assistance From: Sophie Carr, Feranmi Adeoshun

In this episode of The Decisive Podcast from S&P Global Market Intelligence, host Paul Smith, Economics Director, is joined by fellow economists Sian Jones and Andrew Harker to unpack the role of Purchasing Managers' Indices (PMI) in tracking economic trends across more than 40 countries and multiple sectors. They explore how PMI data offers a timely alternative to official statistics, helping organizations monitor conditions in output, prices, inventories, and supply chains when events are moving quickly.
 
The discussion looks at how PMI data is used to understand the impact of major global developments—such as conflict in the Middle East—on shipping, energy costs, input prices, and supply shortages, including through specialized tools like comment trackers and commodity price indices. It also highlights how combining PMI with Comparative Industry Service (CIS) sector forecasts supports corporate teams in setting sales expectations, identifying investment opportunities, and aligning near-term signals with 20‑year outlooks for production, profits, sales, and capex.
 
Whether you're in strategy, risk, or operations, this episode shows how PMI and CIS insights can help you navigate uncertainty, assess resiliency, and make more informed decisions about demand, output, and supply chain performance.
 
More S&P Global Market Intelligence Content:
PMI research home page
Click here to access our exclusive client case study on PMI and sector-specific data 
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Comparative Industry Briefing
Global Executive Summary: Choppy markets, resilient economies
2026: The age of agility
Credits:
Host: Paul Smith
Guests: Andrew Harker, Sian Jones
Produced By: Kristen Hallam
Edited By: Marz Marcello
Published With Assistance From: Sophie Carr, Feranmi Adeoshun