Independent research shows that CRU’s analysis and prices service for aluminium is the most highly rated by market participants in North America and Europe.
Interviews of major companies found that CRU is used by about two thirds of the aluminium industry, which is more than all other providers combined. In North America and Europe, CRU is the clear market leader. CRU was used by 68% of European respondents and by 64% of North American respondents. The next most popular provider in Europe was used by under a third of respondents, while in North America, the second most popular was used by just a fifth.
When asked to rate each provider on a scale of 1 to 5, CRU achieved an average of 4.18. No other provider was rated higher than 3.8. Of those surveyed, 81% rated CRU as either Excellent or Good. The next most highly rated provider was only rated Excellent or Good by 40%.
CRU commissioned this market research, to gather insights from key market participants who use third-party providers for analysis and price assessments. The telephone research was led by an independent market research company, and individuals who took part were chosen randomly to give a balanced pool of views through the supply chain. Respondents were not told who the research was being conducted for.
North American respondents rated CRU’s coverage better than any other provider with 84% rating it Excellent or Good. The next most commonly rated provider by North American respondents was rated Excellent or Good only 50% of the time.
The gap was just as significant in Europe, with 91% of interviewees rating CRU as Excellent or Good, compared to an average for other providers of 53%. The most commonly rated provider was still only rated Excellent or Good 65% of the time.
Participants were asked which qualities they valued most in market intelligence providers and how they rated each provider against each criteria. CRU was rated most highly on the following criteria: coverage of opaque markets such as China, a robust and transparent methodology, the analysts' experience, the quality of interactions with analysts, timely response to market events, quality of online systems, and the accuracy of data.
On the quality of coverage of opaque markets such as China, CRU was rated Excellent or Good by 63% compared to an average of 56% by other providers.
CRU prides itself on the quality of personal interaction that customers have with our analysts – this contact was rated Excellent or Good by 59%, compared to 49% for the other providers.
The quality of online delivery was rated Excellent or Good by 67% of CRU customers but only 50% of other providers’ customers rated their systems as highly.
CRU provide a complete and comprehensive overview of the market and have good forecasting and data that helps us to make decisions. I can call them when I need something, we can discuss it, I am not immediately invoiced for our discussion.
CRU Customer
CRU has been publishing price assessments across the Aluminium value chain for more than 30 years. CRU prices for Aluminium Raw Materials, ingots and premiums are used for references and relied on in contracts by companies across North America and Europe. CRU was cited both for reference and use in contracts more frequently than any other provider in both regions. It was also rated more highly on the accuracy and reliability of price assessments than the average of other providers.
CRU provides comprehensive, accurate and up-to-date price assessments, combined with insight into the factors and events that are affecting markets. Our reputation for robustness and transparency, mean that our customers can rely on CRU. If you have prices embedded in contracts you can trust CRU’s team and methodology to provide certainty and continuity.
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