Over the last two years, some industry pundits suggested that steel prices would never reach the levels seen before the pandemic. Guess where steel prices might be headed?

Certain factors are in place for a potential spike in steel prices, but most steel consumers don’t seem phased by it.

Steel mills announced price hikes roughly a month ago, but declining demand hasn’t done much to support that effort.

Metal fabricators and other steel buyers wonder if steel prices have hit bottom or if they can expect a dead-cat bounce.

With the overall economy slowing a bit, steel consumers might see material prices level off in the coming weeks.

Steel prices look to be falling after a huge price spike in March following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

With indicators showing that steel prices are declining, metal manufacturers continue to be left wondering just where costs will settle.

Steel mills are seeing a possible softening in material demand from metal manufacturing sectors as HRC prices dipped in mid-April for the first time since the outset of the war in Ukraine.

The invasion of Ukraine means steel buyers will have to wrestle with even more pricing volatility in the coming months.

Lead times from the steel mills often are an indicator of where steel prices might be headed. Do decreasing lead times mean lower steel prices for metal fabricators and manufacturers?

After a year of a absorbing a record climb in steel prices, metal fabricators can feel better now that there are signs showing prices have already peaked.

Steelmaking capacity that was forecast to come online in 2021 to provide price relief isn’t expected to arrive anytime soon. Which raises the question: Will steel prices ever return to “normal” levels?

Metal fabricators might want to start keeping an eye on lead times because if they start shrinking, steel prices might begin their descent from historic highs.