Steel Products
February 7, 2022
SMU Steel Buyers Sentiment: Slightly Less Optimistic
Written by Tim Triplett
Steel Buyers Sentiment, as measured by Steel Market Update, has inched downward since the beginning of the year and may finally be reflecting the market’s concerns about sharply declining steel prices. While sentiment readings in the 60s are the lowest they have been since last spring, they remain at very optimistic levels on the 100-point scale.
SMU surveys buyers every two weeks and asks how they view their chances of success in the near and longer term. SMU’s Current Sentiment Index registered +68 this week, down 3 points over the past two weeks. The last time Current Sentiment had a reading in the 60s was in April 2021. Future Sentiment – which measures buyers’ feelings about their prospects three to six months in the future – stayed steady at +64. The slight downtrend in sentiment also can be seen in the three-month moving averages in the charts below.
