Steel Mill Lead Times: Leveling Off?

Lead times for hot rolled and cold rolled steel have flattened out, seeing little change in the past month, as measured by Steel Market Update. Lead times for steel delivery are an indicator of demand at the mill level. The longer the lead time, the busier the mill.

Lead times in general are about a week longer than they were at this time last year, signaling healthier demand. The average lead time for hot rolled steel has leveled out at nearly five weeks, cold rolled at six and a half weeks and coated steels a bit more than seven weeks. Plate lead times are now longer than five weeks.