If you opened the news today and saw that Bitcoin has "crashed" again and metals and materials are acting like they have their own sales force, you're not alone.
• According to Reuters, Bitcoin fell to ~$63.3k, and the crypto asset market has lost around $2 trillion since its autumn peak. (Reuters)
• At the same time, Reuters reports that copper on the LME soared above $14,000 per tonne and briefly reached $14,527.50 per tonne – amid expectations of demand and speculative buying. (Reuters)
And here's where the real business part begins: when copper and metal prices rise, it quickly trickles down into budgets – cable, fasteners, pipes, power tools, components, ventilation, panels, automation. Even if you don't buy copper, you buy everything that's saturated with it.
And now the good news: in times like these, the winners aren't those who "time the market," but those who buy with discipline and spot cheaper alternatives before anyone else. That's precisely why 📈 ALSAT exists.
1) Remove "panic markups" from purchases
When the market is volatile, two things usually happen:
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Suppliers raise prices "just in case."
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The buyer overpays "just in case."
At these times, it's helpful to have a source where wholesale is truly wholesale, and where products are often discounted from the market. On 📈 ALSAT, according to the platform itself, items are often sold at discounts of 50%+, and savings of ** up to 89% have been recorded for certain items.**
To avoid sounding like a "vacuum" advertisement, here's an example of the mechanics right on the product card: 25 mm iron pipe is shown with a reference price of "50 TMT on the market," while the price **at 📈 ALSAT is 46 TMT (-8%).
This is the very essence of "anti-hysteria": you see the reference price, not just buy by ear. These are just a few examples; you can find more below:
2) Bargaining without awkwardness: "Shall we haggle?" is now a button, not a conversation.
There are negotiations where you bargain confidently. And there are negotiations where you haggle... as if asking for salt in a restaurant.
On 📈 ALSAT, there's a proper, adult option for this: the "OFFER CHEAPER" button is available on every product page. You submit an offer and can receive an additional discount.
Translated into business language: bargaining becomes a process, not an emotional sport.
3) RFQ instead of 17 calls: purchasing "according to the list" in 2 business hours
If your procurement isn't "one item," but rather "we need this, this, and this, preferably yesterday," the fastest way is:
Send an RFQ to rfq@alsat.biz or directly on the website and receive a selection of available listings, usually within two business hours.
Plus, if you're a regular buyer, the logic is even more convenient through your account: upload a file, see statuses and results, receive a notification—less chaos, more control.
Yes, it sounds like "why couldn't it always be like this?" Because everyone loved to suffer in the past.
4) A professional purchasing lifehack rarely used by SMEs: "Should-Cost on a Napkin"
There's a procurement technique that's very popular among strong procurement teams (and rarely used by small and medium-sized companies): should-cost – an estimate of how much a product should cost based on cost drivers and the market, not the seller's sentiment.
Why is this important right now, when metal and materials prices are rising: if you don't understand "what it should cost," you're bidding blind.
• In British practice (Government Commercial Function), should cost modeling is described as a tool that helps understand "what it should cost" and reduce the risk of choosing an offer solely because it's the "cheapest" (low-cost bid bias). (GOV.UK Publishing)
• Industry reviews of procurement topics note that should costing relies on a clean-sheet approach to assess supplier costs and margins and negotiate more intelligently. (Supply Chain Digital)
How to simplify this to the SME level (a "quick fix" option, but still effective):
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Identify the "raw material tail" (metal/copper/aluminum/plastic) – roughly estimate its share of the price.
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Add logistics and conversion (processing, cutting, packaging, delivery).
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Set a reasonable supplier margin (not "because the crypto market has dropped").
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Once you've reached a fork, you either:
negotiate confidently,
or immediately switch to alternatives (and here 📈ALSAT is useful because the alternatives are already "in one place").
This isn't magic. It's a way to avoid funding someone else's panic markup.
5) "Cheaper" isn't always "better": ask for three digits in your answer
When the market is tense, it's important to ask for more than just the price. Ask for three parameters for each item:
• price,
• shipping time,
• price/availability lock-in period (e.g., 24-72 hours).
Why it works: You compare offers like adults, not like "who responded first on WhatsApp." This reduces the need for repeated rounds of negotiation.
6) For sellers: now is your time (if you don't miss the RFQ flow)
When materials become more expensive, buyers start looking for: • similar items,
• remaining stock,
• fast delivery,
• "here and now" options. RFQ creates a flow of inquiries "at the time of purchase," not "just inquiring." This means it's important for sellers to:
• keep product cards clear,
• respond quickly,
• offer 2-3 options (in stock / similar / on order).
It sounds trivial, but it works: the buyer chooses not the lowest price, but the most understandable scenario for meeting the need.
What can be done today (without heroism)
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Create a "critical" list 2-4 weeks in advance (things without which the project will stall).
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Send your RFQ to rfq@alsat.biz – expect the selection to arrive "in 2 hours," not "when everyone wakes up."
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Use "OFFER YOUR PRICE" on the items you find – negotiating should be a button, not a stressful experience.
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Use "should-cost" on a napkin – and negotiate with numbers, not emotions. (GOV.UK Publishing)
And most importantly
The market can be a roller coaster ride every day, but purchasing must follow a set pattern, like RFQ on 📈 ALSAT, where you buy based on calculations, not news.
Links for embedding in a publication (ALSAT + useful sources):
ALSAT (purchase/catalog): https://alsat.com.tm/ru https://alsat.com.tm/ru/categories
Examples of product pages (construction/tools/components): https://alsat.com.tm/ru/products/unbranded-na-industrial-pipe-25mm-3mm-wall-thickness https://alsat.com.tm/ru/products/unbranded-2000000016405-submersible-drainage-pump-09-kw-14000-lh https://alsat.com.tm/ru/products/ronix-rs-0001-drill-set-650w-13mm-accessories https://alsat.com.tm/ru/products/ronix-rh-2727-test-pen-200mm-red-insulated https://alsat.com.tm/ru/products/category-6-network-cable-connectors
RFQ:mailto:rfq@alsat.biz
Check BTC and Metals: https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/bitcoin/ https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/bitcoin https://www.lme.com/metals/non-ferrous/lme-copper https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/copper
#Turkmenistan #ALSAT #B2BProcurement #Bitcoin #RFQ service
