AISI: Nov '19 Steel Imports Dipped 30%

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster):  The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) announced that the total steel imports by the U.S. were approximately 1.541 million net tons in November this year. This is based on the monthly imports data published by the U.S. Census Bureau. The imports were down by almost 30%, compared with the October 2019 final imports, which had totalled 2.197 million net tons.

The finished steel imports in November 2019 totalled 1.311 million net tons, which is down by 12.5% upon comparison with the final finished steel imports of 1.499 million net tons in the prior month. The finished steel import market share was estimated at 15% during the month of November.

Through the first eleven months of the current year, the country recorded total and finished steel imports of 26.332 million net tons and 19.675 million net tons respectively. The year-to-date imports of total and finished steel reported sharp declines by 17.3% and 18.1% respectively, over the previous year. The finished steel market share was estimated at around 19% during the initial eleven-month period in 2019.

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The largest offshore suppliers of finished steel in November were South Korea, Japan and the Netherlands. South Korea, Japan and Taiwan were the top three largest suppliers during the year-to-date period, AISI report said.

Imports of Ingots and Billets and Slabs reported largest decline, falling by over 67% in Nov ‘19, when compared with the prior month. Heavy Structural Shapes and Wire Rods too witnessed substantial decline in import volumes. On the other hand, Cut Length Plates imports surged higher by almost 46% over the previous year.