Industry sentiment, as measured by Steel Market Update, took a small step back in the past two weeks, but remains at healthy readings well above recent lows as well as this time last year. With demand and steel prices on the upturn, buyers are still feeling relatively positive about the slowly improving market conditions. SMU […]
Service centers and and other buyers traditionally jump into the market to buy ahead of rising steel prices. Steel prices are clearly on the rise, but only about one-third (33 percent) of buyers responding to Steel Market Update’s questionnaire this week said they feel it’s time to add inventory. Their comments reveal some disagreement about […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled and plate steels continue to extend and are around two weeks longer than in April at the depth of the pandemic as demand recovers and supplies tighten. Lead times for hot rolled now average five and a half weeks, cold rolled and galvanized over seven weeks, and […]
With steel prices on the rise and another round of increases in play, the mills appear to have the upper hand in negotiations. The mills are holding the line in price talks on hot rolled, cold rolled and coated steel orders, as well as plate, according to respondents to Steel Market Update’s market trends questionnaire […]
Flat Rolled = 48.6 Shipping Days of Supply Plate = 56.9 Shipping Days of Supply Flat Rolled Service centers’ flat rolled steel supply reached its lowest point of the year in August, as shipments increased and intake remained nearly flat month on month. In August, service centers carried 48.6 shipping days of supply of flat […]
Industry sentiment, as measured by Steel Market Update, has improved to relatively healthy levels even higher than this time last year prior to the pandemic. Both the Current and Future Steel Buyers Sentiment Indexes have jumped by 20 points or more in the past month, suggesting buyers are feeling better about the market’s recovery. SMU […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled and plate steels have extended by about a week over the past month as demand continues to recover and buying picks up ahead of rising prices. Lead times for hot rolled now average nearly five weeks and coated products more than seven weeks. Lead times are an […]
Flat rolled steel is no longer a buyer’s market as the mills appear less willing to negotiate while they try to collect the price increases they announced late last month. Steel Market Update’s market trends questionnaire this week shows the majority of buyers reporting mills holding the line in price talks on hot rolled, cold rolled […]
Industry sentiment has improved in the past two weeks, as measured by Steel Market Update. SMU’s Steel Buyers Sentiment Indexes took a dip in July but rebounded in the latest check of the market for reasons that are not entirely clear. Respondents bemoan the persistent uncertainty, but business is good in certain sectors. SMU asks […]
For more than 28 percent of steel buyers, business is back to pre-COVID levels already, while at the other end of the spectrum 9 percent have seen little or no recovery. For the vast majority in between, the recovery process is a slow and ongoing one. In the latest market canvass this week, SMU asked: […]
Flat Rolled = 55.5 Shipping Days of Supply Plate = 54.7 Shipping Days of Supply Flat Rolled Service centers pared down flat-rolled steel supply in July to 55.5 shipping days of supply, according to preliminary data, down from 62.5 in June’s adjusted data. Inventories represented 2.52 months of supply in July, down from 2.84 in […]
Industry sentiment has taken a pessimistic turn over the past four weeks as COVID-19 continues to outsmart government and health officials, who can’t seem to unite on a strategy that will stem the spread of the coronavirus. Steel Market Update’s Steel Buyers Sentiment Indexes had been improving since hitting bottom in early April, but dipped […]
With Congress at an impasse over the next round of federal stimulus spending, roughly two out of three steel buyers polled by Steel Market Update believe it’s time to dial it back and not overreact. The other one-third feel the government should double down on spending to support an economy still struggling with the effects […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled steel from the mills were at their shortest in the week of April 30 as orders dried up due to the coronavirus. Since then lead times have extended by about half a week, but saw only minor fluctuations in June and July. Currently, lead times for hot […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled steel are stretching out as demand improves and the mills get busier. Lead times for hot rolled and plate steels have extended past four weeks, while lead times for cold rolled and coated are now longer than six weeks. Lead times are an indicator of steel demand—longer […]
Steel buyers maintain their strong position in price negotiations with steel makers as demand slowly recovers from the coronavirus. The vast majority of those responding to Steel Market Update’s questionnaire this week report that the mills are willing to compromise on price to win orders. Nearly all the hot rolled buyers (91 percent) said the […]
Negotiations between buyers and the mills appear to be tightening as steelmakers attempt to firm up prices in response to improving demand. Steel Market Update’s market trends questionnaire this week shows significantly more mills holding the line in price talks on hot rolled, cold rolled and galvanized steel orders compared to earlier in August. About […]
Two out of three steel buyers polled by Steel Market Update believe the coronavirus has permanently changed the way they do business. Sixty-five percent of the respondents to SMU’s questionnaire last week expect less travel and more working from home to become common practice, among other changes. Following are some of their comments: “There will […]
Industry sentiment had been trending positive since bottoming out in the first week of April—until this week. Steel Market Update’s Steel Buyers Sentiment Indexes slid back from levels earlier in the month on continued uncertainty over the coronavirus and its effects on the economy and steel demand. SMU asks steel buyers how they view their […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled and plate steel have seen relatively little change over the past month, but remain about a half week shorter than this time last year as the market tries to come to grips with doing business in a pandemic. Lead times are an indicator of steel demand—shorter lead […]
Steel buyers clearly have the upper hand in negotiations with steel makers given the challenging market conditions from the virus, with overwhelming percentages of those responding to Steel Market Update’s questionnaire this week reporting that the mills are open to price negotiations to win orders. Nearly all the hot rolled buyers (96 percent) said the […]
Despite bad news on the coronavirus front, as authorities work to keep a surge in COVID-19 infections from derailing the economy once again, sentiment in the steel industry continues to trend positive. Steel Market Update’s Steel Buyers Sentiment Indexes are near levels comparable to this time last year, prior to the pandemic. Since early April […]
Lead times for spot orders of flat rolled steel saw minor and inconsistent changes in the past two weeks, revealing no clear trend. Hot rolled lead times extended slightly, while lead times for cold rolled and galvanized were flat and plate lead times declined, according to Steel Market Update’s check of the market this week. Lead times […]
The vast majority of steel buyers responding to Steel Market Update’s market trends questionnaire this week report that mills are willing to compromise on price to win orders as the economy and steel demand continue to battle the effects of the coronavirus crisis. About 86 percent of hot rolled buyers said the mills are open […]
While industry sentiment improved at a double-digit rate in May, as measured by Steel Market Update’s Sentiment Indexes, June has seen more moderate changes in optimism. Current Sentiment increased by a further 7 points in the past two weeks, but Future Sentiment actually declined by 3 points. This leveling of sentiment most likely reflects ongoing […]
Lead times for spot orders of hot rolled steel have shortened a bit in the past month, which is somewhat unexpected, while delivery times for other flat rolled products have seen small ups and downs as the market searches for a stable footing. Hot rolled lead times now average 3.59 weeks, down from 3.73 two […]
Steel demand is slowly improving as the economy moves on from the coronavirus shutdowns, but the environment remains very competitive, and buyers report that most mills are willing to negotiate on price to win orders of flat rolled steel. Steel prices have moved up erratically since hot rolled bottomed at $460 per ton in late […]
Flat rolled steel price momentum, for spot pricing out of the domestic mills, continues to be in transition, and the SMU Price Momentum Indicator is at Neutral. Neutral means spot mill pricing could go in either direction over the next 30 days. However, SMU and our parent company CRU have both been reporting lower spot […]
Flat Rolled = 67.6 Shipping Days of Supply Plate = 61.0 Shipping Days of Supply Flat Rolled Service center flat roll inventories edged down in May, which was consistent with lower on-order volumes seen in April as well as higher shipments in May. Service centers carried 67.6 shipping days of supply at the end of […]
Flat Rolled = 62.5 Shipping Days of Supply Plate = 58.7 Shipping Days of Supply Flat Rolled Service centers reduced their flat rolled supply to 62.5 shipping days of supply at the end of June, from 67.6, according to adjusted data. In terms of months on hand, June inventories represented 2.84 months of supply, down […]