SMU Data and Models
December 2, 2020
SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment: Clarity Adds to Positivity
Written by Tim Triplett
Industry sentiment inched even higher in the past two weeks now that the presidential election is in the rearview mirror and a COVID vaccine is in sight in the months ahead. The COVID pandemic remains a weight on Future Sentiment, however.
Every two weeks, SMU asks steel buyers how they view their company’s chances for success in the current environment as well as three to six months in the future. The Current Sentiment Index moved up by an additional four points in the latest poll to a reading of +67. At this time last year, prior to the pandemic, the Current Sentiment reading was just +46. Current Sentiment has rebounded by a whopping 75 points since hitting a low of -8 due to the COVID shock in the first week of April.
