Global Composite Steel Price Bottoms Out In January

摘要

US transaction values continue to fall, although the descent is less startling than of late. Some market players feel that even though demand is still far from robust, the bottom may have been reached and prices will settle at this lower level. Mill outages should start to create tighter supply. Moreover, service centre inventories are very low because distributors sold off surplus material cheaply in December and now have gaps in their stocks. Nevertheless, delivery lead times have been cut dramatically, with activity in the main steel consuming sectors showing no real signs of revival. There are very few foreign offers because of low demand and weak prices.