SMU Data and Models

SMU Comparison Price Indices: A New Look and Data for 2014
Written by John Packard
December 22, 2013
Steel Market Update continues to expand and one of the areas we are looking to expand into is the world of plate. As we enter the New Year we will begin indexing discreet plate pricing as we do hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized and Galvalume steels.
We also are changing our CPI (Comparison Price Indices) table. The new look is shown below. Included is the plate pricing, next to each item is the weekly price movement and at the bottom is the average of all the numbers collected and the weekly change for the group.
For the week we found only small movements in pricing with the exception of Steel Orbis which adjusted their galvanized number up $10 to $830 per ton and their Galvalume number up $20 to $1081 per ton (galvanized is based on .060” G90 and Galvalume is .0142” AZ50, Grade 80).
FOB Points for each index:
SMU: Domestic Mill, East of the Rockies.
CRU: Midwest Mill, East of the Rockies.
SteelBenchmarker: Domestic Mill, East of the Mississippi.
SteelOrbis: Midwest Domestic Mill.
Platts: Within 200-300 mile radius of Northern Indiana Domestic Mill.

John Packard
Read more from John PackardLatest in SMU Data and Models

SMU Survey: Current Buyers’ Sentiment Index jumps, Future Sentiment slips
SMU’s Current Buyers’ Sentiment Index rocketed up this week, while the Future Buyers’ Sentiment Index edged down. The two indices are almost at parity.

SMU Survey: Mill lead times stretch to 10-month highs
Buyers responding to our latest market survey reported that steel mill lead times were stretching out this week for sheet and plate products tracked by SMU. The results weren’t much of a surprise. Production times have begun moving out following a wave of frenzied buying in response to stricter Section 232 announced by the Trump […]

SMU Survey: Mills slam door on buyers looking to talk price
Mills’ flexibility on price for spot orders has taken a nosedive to levels not seen since the end of March 2023.

SMU Survey: Steel Buyers’ Sentiment indicates increased optimism
After reaching multi-month lows in mid-January, SMU’s Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Indices rebounded this week to some of the highest readings recorded in months.

SMU Survey: Mill lead times fluctuate, extensions expected
While we have seen some movements in recent weeks, steel mill production times remain within a few days of the historical lows observed over the last two years, a trend observed since mid-2024.