Published Mill Lead Times Back for First Time in ~1 Year - and They're Short

Published mills lead times are back, another sign that the steel market is returning to something resembling normal.

Hot-rolled coil lead times, for example, are three to four weeks at some mills. That would be unremarkable in a normal market. But it is news after a year in which customers were either on allocation or faced with lead times stretching out for months even for basic products like hot band.

Michael Cowden

Michael Cowden is managing editor for Steel Market Update. Cowden has covered the steel industry since 2007. He has since 2014 specialized in flat-rolled steel but has previously reported on steel long products, steel pipe and tube as well as aluminum. Before joining SMU, Cowden held reporting jobs at Fastmarkets AMM in Chicago - where he was involved in launching AMM's daily hot-rolled coil index, the Associated Press in Pittsburgh, and the Cambodia Daily in Phnom Penh. He has also worked as a copy editor and in marketing at the University of Chicago Press. Cowden has a BA in English from the University of Chicago and an MSJ journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Contact him at michael@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7872.