US Steel Imports declined 8.5% in August, says AISI data

ALBANY (Scrap Monster): Based on preliminary Census Bureau data, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported today that the U.S. imported a total of 2,989,000 net tons (NT) of steel in August 2016, including 2,307,000 net tons (NT) of finished steel (down 8.5% and 6.6%, respectively, vs. July final data).

Year-to-date total and finished steel imports are 21,962,000 and 17,601,000 net tons (NT), respectively, down 22% and 23% respectively, vs. the same period in 2015. Finished steel import market share was estimated at 25% in August and at 25% during the initial eight-month period of the year.

Key finished steel products with a significant import increase in August this year when compared to July are standard pipe (up 33%), wire rod (up 23%), structural pipe and tubing (up 18%) and hot-rolled bars (up 15%). Import of Tin plates recorded 12% jump during Jan-Aug ’16 in comparison with the corresponding eight-month period last year.

The preliminary imports of standard pipes totaled 66,370 NT in August, significantly higher by 33.1% when compared with the final imports of 49,859 NT in July. Imports of wire rods totaled 156,915 NT in August, surging higher by 23.4% when matched with 127,160 NT in July. The preliminary imports of structural pipe and tubing totaled 38,923 NT in August, edging higher by 17.7% when compared with the final imports of 33,079 NT in July. The other product category that witnessed considerable jump in import volume was hot-rolled bars. The imports were up by 15% month-on-month from 95,173 NT in July to 109,407 NT in August this year.

On the other hand, the imports of hot rolled sheets witnessed sharp decline over the month in August 2016. The imports dropped by 25.2% from 333,275 NT in July to 249,231 NT in August. Line Pipes too witnessed 24.2% decline in import volume over the previous month. The imports totaled 96,640 NT in August this year as compared with the imports of 127,441 NT during the previous month. The import of reinforcing bars has dropped by nearly 23.3% from 291,211 NT to 223,360 NT. The other product categories that witnessed significant drop in imports were Plates in Coils (down 19.6%), Oil Country Goods (down 15.3%) and Plates Cut Lengths (down 15.1%).

The key finished steel imports during the eight-month period from January to August this year were Ingots, Billets and Slabs (4,339,727 NT), Hot Rolled Sheets (2,090,457 NT) and Sheets and Strip Galvanized Hot Dipped (1,940,521 NT).

In August, the largest exporters of finished steel to the US were South Korea (334,000 NT, down 22% from July final), Turkey( 180,000 NT down 43%), Japan (177,000 NT, down 11%), Taiwan ( 143,000 NT, up 23%), Germany (128,000 NT, up 46%)and Vietnam (107,000 NT, up 68%).

For first eight months of 2016, the largest overseas suppliers of finished steel to the US were South Korea (2, 706,000 NT, down 26% vs. the same period in 2015), Turkey (1,695,000 NT, down 17%), Japan (1,242,000 NT, down 24%), Germany (830,000 NT, down 21%) and Taiwan (652,000 NT, down 27%).

The estimated annualized finished steel imports for the whole year 2016 from various offshore countries are as follows:- South Korea (4,059,000 NT, down 16.4% vs 2015), Turkey (2,542,000 NT, down 9.9%), Japan (1,863,000 NT, down 17.5%), Germany (1,245,000 NT, down 17.9%) and Taiwan (978,000 NT, down 18.9%).

About American Iron and Steel Institute

AISI serves as the voice of the North American steel industry in the public policy arena and advances the case for steel in the marketplace as the preferred material of choice. AISI also plays a lead role in the development and application of new steels and steelmaking technology. AISI is comprised of 19 member companies, including integrated and electric furnace steelmakers, and approximately 125 associate members who are suppliers to or customers of the steel industry.