Most of the aluminum companies will be flat to slightly up in the third quarter versus a year ago, although there will be one or two that will be up 50 percent.

It wouldn't have been a bad year if prices hadn't improved. They were realizing 3-4 cents a pound improvement in costs each quarter. So unlike other aluminum companies, they can keep the spread widening whether price goes up or not.

It's a remarkable story. Their strategy of aggressively reducing costs and aggressively making acquisitions is a winning combination.

Most of the steel customers ran their inventories down very hard late last year.

This is a very equitable deal for both sides. I was not surprised at the price. I had been valuing Reynolds around that level for some time.

Do we need a miracle? Yes, and why not? It will be a difficult and complicated game against a great opponent.