SMU Data and Models
SMU's July at a glance
Written by Brett Linton
August 2, 2024
SMU’s Monthly Review articles summarize important steel market metrics for the prior month. Our latest report contains figures updated through July 31.
Steel prices gradually fell throughout the month of July, for both sheet and plate products. The SMU Price Momentum Indicator remained at lower for the majority of the month, but was adjusted to neutral last week.
Scrap prices were little changed from June to July, with buyers hopeful that this may be the bottom of the market.
We saw continued volatility in Steel Buyers’ Sentiment, with Current Sentiment retreating back to a four-year low by the end of July. Steel mill lead times remained relatively flat across the month, remain near multi-month lows. Meanwhile, the percentage of buyers reporting that mills were willing to negotiate decreased.
See the chart below for other key metrics for July. View historical Monthly Review tables here on our website.
Brett Linton
Read more from Brett LintonLatest in SMU Data and Models
October service center shipments and inventories report
Flat rolled = 63.4 shipping days of supply Plate = 52.4 shipping days of supply Flat rolled shipments and inventories Flat-rolled steel supply at US service centers remains seasonally high. October inventories increased after edging lower in September – a dynamic driven largely by disappointing demand. October’s report reflects lower demand and stable lead times […]
Apparent steel supply slips to 7-month low in September
The total amount of finished steel to enter the US market in September fell to its lowest level in seven months, according to our analysis of recent Department of Commerce and the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) data
SMU market survey results now available
SMU’s latest steel buyers market survey results are now available on our website to all premium members. After logging in at steelmarketupdate.com, visit the pricing and analysis tab and look under the “survey results” section for “latest survey results.” Past survey results are also available under that selection. If you need help accessing the survey results, or if […]
SMU Survey: Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Indices less optimistic this week
SMU’s Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Indices continue to show that steel buyers are optimistic about the success of their businesses, though that confidence has eased compared to earlier in the year.
SMU Survey: Little movement in mill lead times, remain short
Sheet lead times are stable to slightly extended compared to late-October levels, but are down for all products relative to production times one month ago.