SMU Data and Models
June 21, 2018
SMU Market Trends: Lead Times Shorten
Written by Tim Triplett
Mill lead times on all flat rolled steel products shortened in the past two weeks, according to Steel Market Update’s latest market trends data. Lead times for hot rolled now average a bit over five weeks, cold rolled a bit over seven weeks, and galvanized and Galvalume at roughly seven and a half weeks.
Lead times on hot rolled steel peaked in early April at 5.73 weeks and have continued to inch downward. Hot rolled lead times now average 5.24 weeks based on the responses from this week’s market trends questionnaire. They are still extended compared with a year ago, however, when HRC lead times averaged 4.50 weeks.
