Steel Products Prices North America
April 18, 2017
SMU Price Ranges & Indices: No Clear Direction
Written by John Packard
The debate these days seems to be centered around how much inventory is really out there, how much is incoming (especially from foreign sources) and how much flat rolled will buyers need to buy come this summer? Earlier today I asked a small steel mill if they believed the low coated inventories (1.65 months) according to the MSCI data released earlier today. We were told, “Yes, hook line and sinker I believe. But, only customers know how much import they have on the way and I believe that the numbers are quite sizeable so they can afford to play it tight on domestic purchases. Lead times are relatively short, northern mills have tons available, and imports on ground, on boats and on order are enough to not have anyone worried.”
To put this thought process into perspective as SMU was inquiring with service centers about their inventories this afternoon we heard from one buyer, “We have 2.5 [months supply as of the end of March] but we always have 5 months of foreign on order.”
