SMU Survey: Steel Buyers' Sentiment Indices tick up

SMU’s Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Indices have both inched up, according to our most recent survey data.

Every other week, SMU polls thousands of steel industry executives, asking how they rate their companies’ chances of success today and in three to six months. Responses are used to calculate our Current and Future Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Indices, metrics we have tracked since 2008.

Current Sentiment

Current Sentiment ticked up one point to +60 last week vs. two weeks prior (Figure 1). The index started the year at +52, and this marks the first time it’s touched +60 so far in 2026.

Future Sentiment

Meanwhile, Future Sentiment increased three points to +64 (Figure 2). Like the Current Index, this reading is the highest so far this year. This signals that, despite geopolitical and tariff uncertainty, buyers are generally more optimistic about current and near-term chances for success in the market.

What respondents are saying:

“As a steel consumer, I’d love to see HRC below $1,000/ton again.”

“War and world situations can restrict our ability to be successful now.”

“We like the domestic focus, brings more steel into our facility.”

“People are turning over new stones to find steel or processing. We are getting RFQs from companies that wouldn’t be looking in a stable environment.”

“Again, we need demand to pick up and steel pricing start to come down at least a smidge. $1,100 HRC is lunacy.”

“Uncertain, but restricted trade environment seems to limit our ability to be successful in the future as well.”

“Putting in new equipment, that will bring in more work.”

Sentiment trends

Sentiment indices can be analyzed on a three-month moving average (3MMA) basis to better highlight trends and smooth out short-term fluctuations.

The Current Sentiment 3MMA rose to +56.78 last week, up from a prior reading of +55.48 (Figure 3, left).

At the same time, the Future Sentiment 3MMA ticked up to +59.68 vs. +59.21 previously. (Figure 3, right).

About the SMU Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Index

The SMU Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Index measures the attitude of buyers and sellers of flat-rolled steel products in North America. It is a proprietary product developed by Steel Market Update for the North American steel industry. Tracking steel buyers’ sentiment is helpful in predicting their future behavior. View our methodology here. If you would like to participate in our survey, please contact us at smu@crugroup.com.

Ethan Bernard

Ethan Bernard is managing editor for Steel Market Update. He previously worked for American Metal Market as a copy editor in the New York office for two years, starting in 2008. Later, he copy edited AMM’s monthly magazine on a freelance basis from 2015 until 2017. With experience in financial copywriting and textbook publishing, he holds a BA in Comparative Literature from UC Berkeley, and an MFA in Creative Writing from New York University. He can be reached at ethan@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7871.