ISM Steel Buyers Expecting Fewer New Orders in Next 3 Months

Steel buyers report a softening in new orders in the latest Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Steel Buyer’s Survey. Those who expect orders to increase over the next three months dropped to 27.3 from 42.9 percent in January, 18 percent expect orders to decline, and 54.5 percent expect levels to remain the same. Current incoming orders are less than needed for efficient operation according to 36.4 percent of steel buyers and at the right level for 45.5 percent.

Current tons on hand will cover less than one month for 36.4 percent of buyers, 1-2 months for 45.5 percent and 2-4 months for 18.2 percent. Tons on hand are the same or somewhat higher than levels from 12 months ago.