Steel Buyers Optimistic About New Orders—More Dependent on Foreign Mills

More than half of steel buyers in the March Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Steel Buyers Survey are expecting incoming orders to rise in the next three months. The percentage rose from 27.3 in February to 53.3 in March with the rest expecting the order trend to remain the same. Backlogs are expected to remain the same for 60 percent of buyers while 33.3 percent (up from 9.1 percent) expect backlogs to increase. Receipts are forecast to remain the same or increase over the next three months.

Current tons on hand would cover current shipping levels for 0-1 month for 40 percent of buyers, 1-2 months for 33.3 percent, 2-3 months for 20 percent, and 3-4 months for 9.1 percent. Compared to 12 months ago, 46.7 percent say tons on hand are about the same and 33.3 percent say levels are 10 percent higher. Inventories compared to demand are considered too high by 40 percent of those surveyed and just right for 60 percent of buyers. Buyers plan to adjust inventory accordingly.