Plate
April 16, 2026
SMU Survey: Most buyers say mills are holding firm on prices
Written by Brett Linton
Most sheet and plate buyers continue to report that mills are not negotiable on new order spot prices, according to our latest market survey conducted this week. Late last year, we saw price flexibility fade, and mills have held a tight grip on the market since.
Every two weeks, SMU polls over 1,000 service center and manufacturer buyers to see whether mills are willing to negotiate on new spot-order pricing. This week, just 23% of respondents said mills were willing to talk price to secure an order (Figure 1). This is up four points from our previous survey, which marked the lowest negotiability rate recorded in over a year.
Negotiability low across all products
Four of the five products we track saw shrinking negotiation rates this week, while one inched up (Figure 2). Current rates are:
- Hot rolled: 13% of buyers said mills are negotiable on price, up three percentage points from our prior survey (which was the lowest rate recorded in 13 months).
- Cold rolled: up six points to 20%, recovering from a one-year low and now back in line with rates recorded since the start of the year.
- Galvanized: unchanged at 33%. While this is one of the most negotiable products, it is the lowest rate seen in the past year.
- Galvalume: up three points to 33%, similar to rates recorded over the past four months.
- Plate: up five points to 22%, but just nine points above the near three-year low set one month ago.
Buyer remarks:
“Hot rolled depends on mill, product, and volume. I would say mills are listening.”
“Not much of any negotiation on HRC, availability remains slim.”
“Generally not on cold rolled, understandably. I am not sold on all mills being full, especially on cold roll and galvanized, just hot rolled pulling tons.”
“Depends on the mill and size of the buy. There is more negotiation on galvanized orders.”
“Still a few mills with availability/coating-line time.”
“Not [negotiable on plate] in Canada. US pricing is competitive, until you add tariffs.”
Note: SMU surveys active steel buyers every other week to gauge their steel suppliers’ willingness to negotiate new order prices. The results reflect current steel demand and changing spot pricing trends. Premium members can view an interactive history of our steel mill negotiations data on our website.
