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    Steel Buyers Basics: Trouble

    Written by Mario Briccetti


    The following article is a continuation of our Steel Buyers Basics series and is written by Mario Briccetti.  Mario is Principal of Briccetti & Associates, a Supply Chain consulting firm, and can be reached at Mario@mbriccetti.com

    In an earlier article I noted that the steel business is often subject to interruptions in supply and described several strategies to mitigate supply chain risk.  However, even the best backup plans don’t always work.  With the recent pair of mill shutdowns at US Steel, I thought it would be time to write an article on how to react to (rather than plan for) an interruption of supply when a steel buyer doesn’t have a viable back up source of supply.

    Latest in Market Data

    SMU flat-rolled market survey results now available

    The results of the latest Steel Market Update (SMU) flat-rolled market survey are now available on our website to all premium members. After logging in, look under the Data tab for Market Reports, and there you will find the Flat-Rolled Survey Results section. Previous survey results are also available on that page. If you need help accessing these results, or if your company would like to have your voice heard in our future surveys, contact smu@crugroup.com.

    supply

    September service center shipments and inventories report

    US service centers’ flat-rolled steel supply increased marginally in September, gaining ground for only the second time all year. Shipping days of supply rose to 45.9 last month, according to SMU data. That figure marks a 3.7% increase from August. September’s result represents a modest gain after inventories hit a five-year low the previous month. But it’s nearly 16% below September 2025 levels. Sheet inventories have averaged ~45 shipping days of supply over the past six months. Flat-rolled inventories represented 2.18 months of supply in September, up 3.7% from August. However, the figure was 15.5% below September 2025. The month-on-month (m/m) gain in inventories resulted from a boost (+21.2%) in intake that was partially offset by a 5% increase in shipments.

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