SMU Survey: Buyers report mills are slightly less flexible on pricing

Steel buyers of sheet and plate products say mills are still willing to bend on spot pricing this week, though not quite as much as they were two weeks prior, according to our most recent survey data. Negotiation rates have been high for the majority of 2024, especially in the latter half of the year.

SMU polls hundreds of service center and manufacturer buyers every other week asking if domestic mills are open to negotiation on new spot order prices. This week, about four out of every five buyers we surveyed reported that mills would talk price to secure a new order (Figure 1). This 81% rate has marginally declined since reaching a multi-year high of 93% in late October. At this time last year, we saw much lower negotiation rates (40-50%).