Aluminum Virtual Symposium 2021

Michael E. Belwood has been Vice President, Global Government Affairs, for Arconic Corporation, since the company’s launch April 2020, responsible for the company’s public policy functions. Prior to this assignment, he was Vice President, Government Affairs, for Arconic Inc., responsible for state government relations and the company’s political action committee in the United States, as well as leading globally public affairs initiatives supporting Arconic’s growth and expansion. He assumed this role in 2016, upon the successful completion of Arconic’s successful spin-off of Alcoa Corporation.

In his prior role with Alcoa Inc., Mr. Belwood was responsible for Congressional and State government affairs in the US as well as the Company’s political action committee and government partnerships activity. Prior to this assignment, he was director of Media and Corporate Relations for Alcoa, responsible for global corporate media relations and reputation management.

From 2002 through October 2009, Mr. Belwood was Manager, North American Public Strategy, responsible for government relations and public affairs in Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Iowa. In that role, he was responsible for leading the development and implementation of community relations plans for each Alcoa location across the region and directing state government relations activities.

Prior to this assignment, he served as Indiana Public Affairs Manager, leading state government relations and location public affairs for Alcoa’s Global Packaging and Primary Products businesses.

A native of Evansville, Ind., Mr. Belwood has worked in media and public affairs for more than 30 years and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Public Affairs Council and formerly chaired the Government Affairs Committees of the Aluminum Association and the Motor and Equipment Manufacturers Association. He is a graduate of Indiana University in Bloomington and worked for 10 years as a newspaper reporter and editor before joining Alcoa.

Mr. Belwood and his wife, Jane, have three children.

Roxana Molina is Senior Vice President and Chief Procurement Officer. In this position, Roxana leads the global procurement function, including both metal and non-metal procurement. She executes strategic category management and oversees best-in-class supplier relationships to serve Novelis’ customers and create business value.

Roxana comes to Novelis with more than 30 years of experience across a wide range of procurement roles. During her career at Ford, which spanned 25 years, Roxana held a variety of leadership positions within purchasing in the United States, Europe and Brazil. Most recently, she served as Global Purchasing Director, Engine and Powertrain Installations. In this position, Roxana led a team of 200 employees based in the U.S., Mexico, China, India, Brazil and the UK. Her accomplishments at Ford include transforming the automotive maker’s South America purchasing organization and leading cross-functional efforts to increase vehicle output and reduce supplier-related production losses.

Roxana holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from Universidad de Lima, an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin and a Six Sigma Green Belt. She is fluent in English, Spanish and Portuguese and speaks some Japanese.

Dan North has been with Euler Hermes North America since 1996, using macroeconomic and quantitative analyses to help manage Euler’s risk portfolio of more than $150 billion in annual U.S. trade transactions.

As an economist he has appeared on CNBC, Fox Business News, France 24, The Street, and Bloomberg Radio and Television. He has been quoted by Barron’s, Business Week, Paris Le Monde, Tokyo Nikkei, the BBC, the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. After having predicted the 2008/2009 recession and its implications accurately, he was ranked 4th on Bloomberg’s list of the 65 top economic forecasters in 2010. Mr. North holds an MBA from the Wharton School of Business.

Tracy Liao has been a Commodities Strategist at Citi Research in Hong Kong since 2014, with primary coverage of industrial metals. She is also responsible for running and expanding Citi’s Asian Commodities research franchise. Prior to Citi, Tracy held positions at top investment banks and think-tanks. Tracy holds a Master’s degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and a Bachelor’s degree in economics and international politics from Peking University.

Sean Kessler serves as Director, Metals Products for CME Group. He is responsible for the strategic development, management and profitability of the company’s industrial and precious metals business in the Americas.

Prior to joining CME Group in 2018, Kessler was a metals trader at Red Kite Group and ED&F Man Capital Markets, where he managed risk in metals futures and over-the-counter markets. He holds an MBA as well as bachelor’s degrees in finance and economics from Sacred Heart University.

Todd R. Olson is the chief executive officer (CEO) of Twin City Die Castings Co. He assumed the role of CEO in 2017, after successfully leading the company through its transition to employee ownership. Twin City Die Castings (TCDC), a U.S.-based aluminum and magnesium die casting company serving the automotive sector along with medical, defense, powersports and other industrial markets. TCDC with three manufacturing facilities, has been in business since 1919. Todd joined the company in 2004 and has held leadership positions in sales, engineering, finance, and international business.

Active in his industry, Todd has been on the board of directors of the International Magnesium Association since 2014, serving as its President in 2018 - 2020. He is also on the Board of Governors for the North American Die Casting Association (NADCA). Todd holds a bachelor’s degree in business and economics from Northern State University, South Dakota.

Scott Breen is the Vice President of Sustainability at the Can Manufacturers Institute(CMI). CMI represents U.S. can manufacturers and suppliers. His responsibilities include promoting the can as a sustainable/circular package, making sure federal and state legislation and regulation do not disadvantage the can, and leading the industry’s efforts to build upon the can industry’s leading recycling rates.

Scott’s roles prior to CMI were Associate Manager of the Sustainability and Circular Economy Program at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and Attorney-Advisor at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Along with his position at CMI, Scott also explores various aspects of sustainability as the creator and co-host of the podcast Sustainability Defined.

Beth Ann Bovino is the U.S. Chief Economist and Managing Director at S&P Global Ratings Services, based in New York. In this position, she develops S&P’s U.S. economic forecasts and authors the quarterly U.S. Economic Forecast, the biweekly Financial Notes and the Business Cycle Barometer. Beth Ann has written timely research reports on long‐term economic trends and has created industry drivers for analyst research. She is quoted regularly in the press and has appeared on many major television programs. Further, she has written many articles for popular and professional publications.

Before joining S&P Global in February 2004, Beth Ann spent over ten years doing economic and market research with Sungard Institutional Brokerage, UBS Warburg, and the Federal Reserve.

The Wall Street Journal recognized Beth Ann as the most accurate forecaster of the U.S. economy in 2013, and the second most accurate forecaster of the U.S. economy in 2018. The YWCA honored Beth Ann for her work on women in the workforce, inducting her into their YW Academy of Women Leaders at their 45th Salute Luncheon in 2018.

Beth Ann holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, a master’s degree in International and Development Economics from Yale University and a Ph.D. in Economics from Columbia University.

As Vice President of Government Relations and International Programs, Lauren Wilk leads the Aluminum Association’s government relations department – advancing policy outcomes, advocacy efforts and lobbying activity in support of the association’s key policy priorities.

In addition to building relationships with the new Administration and strengthening our voice in Congress, Lauren also leads the organization’s engagement with international organizations that impact the U.S. aluminum industry. She serves as the staff executive to the Government Affairs Committee, PAC Board of Advisors and Sustainability Advisory Council.

Lauren is a formal advisor to the U.S. Trade Representative and Department of Commerce as a member of the Industry Trade Advisory Committee on Automotive Equipment and Capital Goods, where she represents the aluminum industry.

Before joining The Aluminum Association, Lauren was Director of Trade Policy at the National Association of Manufacturers in Washington, D.C. She previously served as a Senior Legislative Assistant for former U.S. Representative Donald Manzullo. Prior to working on Capitol Hill, she worked for the Aerospace Industries Association and the American Farm Bureau Federation.

Kansas native, she received a B.S. in Journalism and a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Kansas and a M.A. in National Security Studies from the Naval War College.

Lauren serves on the Board of Directors of the Junior League of Washington and is an active Pi Beta Phi alumnae. She lives with her husband and two sons in Takoma Park, Maryland.

Julie Mendoza is a Partner in Morris, Manning & Martin’s International Trade practice. Julie represents multinational businesses, U.S. importers, foreign producers, and foreign governments, in various trade remedy cases under U.S. import relief laws and in U.S. customs matters. Julie has a global practice, advising clients in various industries all around the world. She practices before international organizations such as the WTO and various U.S. regulatory agencies and U.S. courts. Julie has been involved in various high-profile steel disputes as well as litigation challenging Section 232 duties and Section 301 duties as well as anticircumvention investigations, and customs compliance matters. Julie is ranked by both Chambers USA and Chambers Global as a leading practitioner in International Trade: Trade Remedies and Trade Policy.

Matt leads the market analytics and research development efforts for AEGIS. He brings over 20 years of experience in energy markets research, trading, technology deployment, and management consulting.

Matt’s experience extends across the entire petroleum barrel, and beyond. He led supply-side modeling for natural gas at Platts Bentek during the emergence of U.S. shale development. He also launched the firm’s oil-market research, counseling producers, banks, and trading houses on how to understand and exploit the rise of U.S. oil production.

He led trading research for ethane, propane, butanes, natural gasoline, ethylene, propylene, and Henry Hub natural gas at Cargill, a prominent risk-management and then-global energy trading company. As necessary, his coverage extended to U.S. power markets, coal, and refined products.

At AEGIS, Matt launched research into not just these commodities, but also those that are adjacent to and affect oil, gas, and NGLs prices.

Matt’s client work at AEGIS has included scenario testing of client financial-statement price sensitivities, network models for natural gas basis and oil differentials, valuation risk of transportation contracts, and effectiveness of statistical hedges when risks cannot be determined by traditional means.

Chris is S&P Global Platts' Regional Pricing Director for Americas Metals, managing teams in the US, Mexico and Brazil. Previously, he was Content Director for EMEA Metals, overseeing ferrous and nonferrous pricing and news coverage from London. Chris joined S&P Global Platts following its acquisition of Steel Business Briefing (SBB) in 2011. Before joining SBB, he covered topics ranging from politics and government to biotechnology and manufacturing for newspapers including the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and Pittsburgh Business Times, as well as South Carolina’s Anderson Independent-Mail and Greenville News. He graduated from Clemson University with a degree in English.

Karen McBeth is a content director in the S&P Global Platts Metals Group actively involved in researching new price assessments, evolving methodologies, training editors and engaging with the industry. She joined the group in 1990 and spent the 1990s covering government issues affecting all metals, as well as developing price assessments for magnesium and titanium. From 1994-1999, she oversaw pricing across US primary and secondary aluminum and started new assessments for scrap, billet and six-months forward P1020. From 1999-2011, she managed the global nonferrous group. She assumed her current position after Platts’ acquisition of Steel Business Briefing in 2011. Before joining Platts, she was a magazine editor covering groceries and consumer products. McBeth has a BA in Communications Studies and a BS in Marketing Management from Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia.

Nick has been covering metals news for Platts since 2019 with a focus on the aluminum, copper, and battery metals industries. He is based out of the company’s Pittsburgh office.

Ms. Baltic, managing editor for S&P Global Platts, has been with the company since 2011, covering primary and secondary aluminum, scrap, silicon and magnesium metal. She co-leads the benchmark Platts US Midwest aluminum Transaction price assessment on a daily basis and the Platts A380 aluminum price assessment bi-weekly. Her work can be seen in Platts Metals Alert online news service and Platts Metals Daily. She has previous experience editing for the magazine and textbook industries. Ms. Baltic holds a bachelor’s degree in magazine journalism and marketing from Syracuse University. She is a member of the Women's Initiative for Networking and Success, the Mid-Atlantic chapter of the Association of Women in the Metal Industries and the National Press Club.

In his role as Americas Derivatives Manager for the S&P Global Platts Metals Group, Nick Ruggiero oversees derivatives product development for both the aluminum and ferrous markets and metals analysis. Before joining Platts, Nick served as senior index trader/PM at a private hedge fund where he managed a multi-asset portfolio of commodities, currencies, fixed income, and equities in excess $300 million, while overseeing risk management and analysis.

His previous experience includes several years as a trader on the floor of the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX & COMEX) where he was mainly responsible for the execution of hedging programs for oil and gas clients. Over the years he has traded crude oil, RBOB, heating oil, natural gas, gold, silver, copper, aluminum, nickel, zinc, platinum, palladium, corn, wheat, soybeans, hogs, cattle, coffee, sugar, cocoa and cotton futures, equities -- and other global macro options, swaps and index products.

Nick has an MBA in Finance and Economics from Wagner College Graduate School, has contributed to Bloomberg and been quoted about macro-economic trends such as exchange rates, inflation, GDP growth, and more.