Final Thoughts

The day was bubbling with rumors as I was actively speaking with both plate and flat rolled steel buyers. They were telling me to expect a price increase announcement on both products. The plate guys were much less confident that any increase would “stick,” but it is worth trying. On the flat rolled side, mill lead times are further out than plate, with most mills already in January production/promise dates. There continue to be questions as to whether the market is strong enough to allow for an additional $40 on top of the first $40 announced by the mills back on Oct. 24-25.

Those service centers who participate in our flat rolled and plate steel inventories and shipment data received their “flash” report this afternoon and they have a solid hint as to the actual strength of the market. The data and our analysis are revealing, and I think important when considering where prices will go from here on each product. Especially when looking at inventories on order. If you are a service center and you would like to participate in our confidential data collection, please contact either myself: John@SteelMarketUpdate.com or Estelle.Tran@crugroup.com and we can walk you through the process, and provide a confidentiality agreement.