Steel Mill Lead Times: Still Trending Down

Lead times for most flat rolled steel products are about a week shorter than they were two months ago. Shorter lead times suggest that steel demand is easing. Lead times for steel delivery are a measure of demand at the mill level—the shorter the lead time, the less busy the mill. Lead times for hot rolled now average just four weeks, cold rolled a bit more than six weeks, galvanized about six and a half weeks, and Galvalume seven weeks.

Hot rolled lead times now average 4.07 weeks, slightly longer than this time last year. Current lead times for hot rolled are down from 5.18 weeks two months ago and 4.62 weeks one month ago. This year’s peak for hot rolled delivery was 5.73 weeks in April.