April is now behind us and it proved to be one interesting month. In looking at the key data we follow on a monthly basis for our readers, SMU Price Momentum Indicator ended the month where it began pointing to higher prices over the near term. SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index ended the month at […]
Steel Market Update (SMU) Steel Buyers Sentiment Index reached new highs this week. Buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel were the most optimistic we have seen since SMU first began measuring Sentiment in October 2008. Our Sentiment Index was measured at +58 which is up 15 points since early April and exceeded the previous […]
The situation at US Steel Great Lakes, and now Gary Works, has not bridled the enthusiasm which has been growing within the flat rolled steel markets. We are seeing buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel continuing to be optimistic about their company’s ability to be successful in both today’s market as well as three […]
Flat rolled steel pricing momentum reversed course due to the price increase announcement led by ArcelorMittal and followed by virtually all of the domestic and Canadian steel mills. We moved the SMU Price Momentum Indicator first to Neutral and then a week later to Higher in response to the increase announcements and the fact that […]
When I last wrote my final thoughts, I had just discovered that my passport had expired ten days earlier and I was scheduled to speak to the Toronto Steel Buyers & Associates dinner in Canada the following day. My efforts to have the passport renewed in Atlanta were rebuffed and I was down to my […]
The possibility for steel prices to have, at the very least, bottomed and improving weather conditions across the United States and Canada have sparked an improvement in our Steel Market Update (SMU) Steel Buyers Sentiment Index. The index, which has been monitoring buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel since 2008, was reported earlier today […]
On Monday of this week, Steel Market Update (SMU) began our early March flat rolled steel market analysis. We sent invitations to just under 600 companies associated with the industry. Of the companies responding 44 percent were manufacturing companies (end users), 40 percent were steel service centers/wholesalers (distributors), trading companies represented 6 percent of the […]
Buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel continue to be optimistic regarding business prospects both in the current market environment as well as looking out 3 to 6 months into the future. Even so, our index was 2 points lower than the +39 measured during the middle of February and at +37 is the lowest […]
Steel Market Update (SMU) began collecting responses for the mid-February flat rolled steel market survey during the week of February 17th. Even with weather related issues being felt around the country, our Buyers Sentiment Index was measured at a robust +39 at that time. That result was one point lower than from our last measurement […]
Steel Market Update (SMU) Steel Buyers Sentiment Index averaged +39.5 which was down from the +43.5 reported during the month of January. Our SMU Price Momentum Indicator went from Neutral to Lower as we adjusted our indicator to reflect the dropping steel prices which we expect to continue over the next 30 days. Benchmark hot […]
Steel Market Update (SMU) conducted our mid-February flat rolled steel market survey this past week. Our surveys are by invitation only and our current invitee list consist of 586 companies. The vast majority of the individuals or companies associated with our survey have been vetted by SMU management to insure that we are working from […]
Steel Market Update (SMU) began collecting responses earlier this week from the companies invited to participate in our twice monthly flat rolled steel market analysis. Even with weather related issues being felt around the country, our Buyers Sentiment Index was measured at a robust +39 this week. This result is one point lower than from […]
Steel Market Update (SMU) began collecting responses earlier this week from the just shy 600 companies invited to participate in our twice monthly flat rolled steel market analysis. The individuals responding to our questions this week – particularly those related to our SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index – were being influenced by weather related issues […]
Late last week Steel Market Update concluded our mid-January market survey of the flat rolled steel market in Canada and the United States. The survey is conducted by invitation only and is sent to slightly less than 600 companies. The breakout of the respondents was: 48 percent manufacturing companies, 42 percent service centers/wholesalers, 5 percent […]
Steel Market Update (SMU) released ourr latest Steel Buyers Sentiment Index which measures how buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel feel about their company’s ability to be successful in the current business environment. The mid-January Sentiment Index was measured over the period January 20 through February 23, 2014 and is being reported at +44. […]
Buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel entered the New Year in very high spirits. Our Steel Market Update (SMU) Steel Buyers Sentiment Index was measured at +42 which is the most optimistic level recorded since March 1, 2012 (+45). The rolling three month moving average (3MMA) came in at +38.33 which is a one […]
Steel Market Update (SMU) would like to share some of the data we collected during the past 12 months. Below is a review of flat rolled steel pricing for 2013, scrap pricing during the year, SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index and more… Benchmark Hot Rolled Pricing in Review Benchmark hot rolled ended 2012 at $635 […]
SMU Price Momentum Indicator ended the month of December where it began, indicating higher flat rolled steel prices over the next 30 days. The domestic steel mills did not disappoint as they raised base price levels to $35.00/cwt on hot rolled and $40.50/cwt on cold rolled and coated (plus extras, FOB mill) for the mills […]
On Monday, December 16th we began collecting data for our last Steel Market Update flat rolled steel market analysis. The way the system works is over the years Steel Market Update (SMU) has vetted a number of companies (many of whom John Packard did business with in the past). Our current list has approximately 600 […]
The Steel Market Update (SMU) Steel Buyers Sentiment Index was reported this week to be +37 which is 2 points lower than our last reading made during the first week of December. Nonetheless, SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment is well within the optimistic range of our index where it has been for 24 consecutive months. Sentiment […]
Buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel continue to be optimistic about their company’s ability to be successful in the current market conditions. Based on the results of our early December steel market analysis, SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index was measured at +39. This is up 6 points from our last reading and well within […]
Final October import data was released earlier this week, showing total imports for the month at 3,101,063 net tons (2,813,240 metric tons). This figure is the highest tonnage seen since April 2012 when imports were 3,144,947 NT (2,853,051 MT). Total October imports are well above both the 3 and 12 month-moving-averages (MMA). Compared to September, […]
After two months of sideways movement, November saw our SMU Pricing Momentum Indicator shift to reflect higher steel prices as the trend over the next 30 days. Our proprietary SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index remained within optimistic range of the index at +36.5. Sentiment was down one point from the prior month and three points […]
Buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel products continue to be optimistic about their company’s ability to be successful in the current market environment, however at lower levels than what we had been seeing over the past few months. The Steel Market Update (SMU) Steel Buyers Sentiment Index was measured this week at +33 down […]
Our existing website is about as basic as one can get when it comes to housing our pricing and other data. The existing site has no ability to provide data in a graphic form and our tables are cumbersome and pretty low-tech. This is not the image we want to project as we build toward […]
Buyers and sellers of flat rolled steel who participated in our latest review of the steel industry continued to be optimistic regarding their company’s ability to be successful in the current market environment. The latest Steel Market Update (SMU) Steel Buyers Sentiment Index was measured at +40 during the first full week of November. The […]
It has now been three consecutive months that the SMU Price Momentum Indicator has been at Neutral. Flat rolled steel prices have broken out of the $640 per ton doldrums with benchmark hot rolled coil haven risen to $665 as of earlier this week. The monthly average for benchmark hot rolled is $651 per ton […]
Based on responses from the Steel Market Update (SMU) mid-October steel market survey, SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment Index is +38 and is considered to represent an optimistic view of the industry by those buying and selling flat rolled steel products. The latest reading is up one point over our early October measurement but is one […]
In spite of the federal government’s decision to shut down, those involved in the flat rolled steel industry continue to remain optimistic about their company’s ability to be successful in both the current environment as well as 3-6 months into the future. Steel Market Update (SMU) just completed our beginning of October flat rolled steel […]
September ended with the SMU Price Momentum Indicator pointing toward Neutral. In light of the price increase announcements beginning to come out of the domestic steel mills we will continue our Neutral position allowing all the mills to announce (or not) and buyers to react before making a change toward one direction or another. SMU […]