Steel Mill Lead Times: Still Getting Shorter

Mill lead times for flat rolled products continued to shorten slightly over the past few weeks. The average lead time for hot rolled is now down to three and a half weeks, cold rolled is less than five and a half weeks and coated steels are just six weeks. Plate lead times remain around four weeks, according to data gathered this past week by Steel Market Update. It should be noted, however, that SMU gathered this data prior to the $40 price increase announced by the mills later in the week.

Lead times for steel delivery are a measure of demand at the mill level. The shorter the lead time, the less busy the mills, and the more likely they are to discount prices.