U.S. Steel Import Permits Surged 27%, Says AISI

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The recent report published by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) indicates significant surge in steel import permit applications during the month of April this year.

Based on the latest Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis (SIMA) data by the Department of Commerce, the permits surged higher by 3.6% month-on-month from 2.794 million net tons in Mar ’19 to 2.894 million net tons in April this year. The permit applications surged higher by more than 27% when matched with March 2019 final imports. The permit applications for finished steel were up by 6.6% to total 1.983 million net tons.

The overall steel imports by the country during the initial four months of the year totaled 11.079 million net tons, out of which finished steel accounted for 8.039 million net tons. These imports include March final data and April SIMA permits. When compared with Jan-Apr ‘18, the total and finished steel imports were down significantly by 11.1% and 17.2% respectively.

According to April 2019 SIMA data, import permits of standard rails skyrocketed by 223%. The other products to report significant import jump were sheets and strip electrolytic galvanized and wire rods whose permits were up by 153% and 80% respectively. Meantime, line pipes recorded largest increase by 21% in permits during Jan-Apr ’19.

Among offshore countries, South Korea recorded the largest number of steel import permit applications in April, followed by Japan and Germany. Also, the above three countries emerged as the top three suppliers in the first four months of 2019.