US Ferrous scrap exports off to a lacklustre start in 2017

SPOKANE (Scrap Monster): The latest statistics released by the US International Trade Commission (ITC) shows modest decline in ferrous scrap exports by the country during the first month of the current year. Also, the data published by the US Department of Commerce (DOC) indicates that nickel scrap exports by the country too declined during the month.

The US ferrous scrap exports totaled 977,969 tons during the month. The exports were down by 19.7% when compared with December ’16. However, when matched with the exports during the same month a year before, the Jan ’17 exports were up significantly by nearly 77%. The largest scrap export destination during the month was Mexico. The Mexican imports climbed higher by 46% from the previous month to total 182,160 tons. The year-over-year rise in Mexican imports stood at 186%. The US scrap exports to Turkey dropped sharply to 82,017 tons during the month. It must be noted that Turkey has been the largest importer of US scrap for a long time.

The country’s ferrous scrap exports had totaled 13.230 million tonnes (Mt) during entire 2016, inching higher by 3.6% over 2015. The primary importer of US ferrous scrap during the year was Turkey. The Turkish imports totaled 3.168 Mt, accounting for nearly 24% of the total US ferrous scrap exports during the year. The Mexican imports of US ferrous scrap skyrocketed by 78%, when compared with imports of 1.152 Mt recorded during 2015. In third place was Taiwan with total imports of 1.366 Mt. The top 10 export destinations also included India (1.113 Mt), China (887,761t), South Korea (847,834t), Canada (716,038t), Pakistan (451,708t), Kuwait (441,681 t) and Thailand (426,954t).

The domestic US H1 scrap prices averaged at $295.17 per long ton, as on 3^rd March, 2017. The prices rose for the first time in two months during the week. The H1 scrap average price in Pittsburg was $299.50 per long ton, higher by $35 per ton over the previous week. In Chicago the prices averaged at $312.50 per ton, up by $40 per ton from last week. The average H1 scrap export price in Philadelphia was $273.50 per long ton, remaining more or less stable over the previous week.

The most recent statistics released by the US Department of Commerce suggests modest decline in nickel scrap exports by the country in January. The US nickel scrap exports totaled 2,460 tons during the month, down by 11.4% when compared with the prior month. The exports had totaled 2,777 tons in December last year. The exports to Canada and Sweden recorded month-over-month rise, but exports to Asian destinations including Japan, China and India dropped.

Meantime, global ferrous scrap prices extended its rising trend during the past week. The prices climbed higher to US$ 290-295 per tonne for the 80/20 mix for shipments from Europe to Turkey. Shredded prices ranged between $295-300 per tonne. The scrap exports from the US were priced at around $303 per tonne for HMS I/II 80/20 and $308 per tonne for shredded. The Baltic sea cargoes too were priced around $300 per tonne. The scrap export prices from the US to Taiwan for HMS I/II 80/20 has surged higher significantly from $240 per tonne in early-February to as high as $280 per tonne during last week.