Steel Market Trends: Views on Demand, Capacity

Whether the mills succeed in collecting the $40 increase on flat rolled they announced in recent days depends a lot on how strong demand proves to be in the first quarter.

Such price hikes are common in January as the mills anticipate a pickup in business following the seasonal slowdown in the fourth quarter. Service centers often stock up in the first quarter in anticipation of new business in the spring. This year appears to be shaping up a bit differently, however. Many buyers remain on the sidelines, hoping for some clarity on the big questions of the day: Trump trade policies, another government shutdown, the staying power of Section 232, and the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, among other uncertainties. Steel Market Update data suggests that demand currently stands at a high level—but more buyers see it worsening than improving.