Steel Products
April 18, 2021
SMU Steel Market Survey Results: Strong Demand, Low Inventories, Extended Lead Times
Written by John Packard
Buyers of flat rolled and plate steels continue to complain of their inability to get enough steel in order to supply their customers. In the latest steel market analysis conducted by Steel Market Update last week, 47% of the respondents to our survey reported they were unable to get enough supply. We have seen a small improvement over the past month as 54% of steel buyers reported they were unable to get enough steel when we conducted our survey the week of March 15. Since then, it improved to 50% the week of March 25 and now sits at 47% as of last week.
Demand remains quite strong as 43% of the total respondents reported demand as improving. We saw 52% reporting demand as remaining the same and only 5% reported demand as in decline.
