Steel Mill Negotiations: Price Talks Tightening

Now in the second month of the new year, shortly after the mills announced a $40 price increase, price negotiations appear to be tightening up a very small bit. Buyers generally report that the mills are still willing to talk price on hot rolled, cold rolled, galvanized and to a lesser degree Galvalume. On the plate side, buyers are still finding plate prices as firm with not much room for negotiation.

In the hot rolled category, 69 percent of buyers responding to SMU’s latest questionnaire said they have found mills willing to negotiate on price. While still the majority, that percentage is down significantly from the 86 percent in SMU’s last batch of data. Nearly a third of the buyers, 31 percent, say the mills are now holding the line on HR.