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    December 5, 2024

    SMU Survey: Buyers say most mills still flexible on prices

    Written by Brett Linton

    A high percentage of the steel buyers we polled this week continue to respond that mills are open to price negotiation on new spot orders. Rates have been high for the majority of the year.

    Every other week, SMU surveys hundreds of steel market executives, asking if domestic mills are flexible on new spot order pricing. This week, 88% of our buyers reported that mills would talk price to secure a new order (Figure 1). This is one of the higher rates recorded this year, just below the all-time high seen in late-October (93%). This time last year we saw much lower negotiation rates, between 29-50% in November and December.

    Brett Linton

    Brett Linton is a digital operations analyst for Steel Market Update, where he began his career. Linton has been in the steel industry since 2010. He has held roles as a category manager and strategic insights director at Reibus before returning to SMU in 2024. He is a graduate of The University of North Georgia with a degree in Finance and Accounting. Brett can be reached at brett@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-314-0179.

    Read more from Brett Linton

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