U.S. Scrap Iron and Steel Exports See Notable Decline

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The export trade data published by the U.S. Census Bureau suggests notable decline in exports of scrap iron and steel during the first two months of the current year. The exports were down by 25.81% to total $684.53 million during Jan-Feb ’19, as compared with $922.68 million during the corresponding two-month period in 2018. It must be noted that the exports were valued at $5.91 billion during the full year 2018.

The topmost trade partner during Jan-Feb ’19 was Turkey. The exports to that country were valued at $123.98 million, accounting for 18.11% of all U.S. shipments. The receipts by Turkey dropped significantly by almost 39% over the previous year. South Korea, the second largest export destination, received $92.7 million worth of scrap iron and steel. The U.S. exports to South Korea skyrocketed by 215%. In third place was Taiwan with total imports of $90.42 million. The other key importers were India ($64.1 million) and Mexico ($52.08 million). Nearly 62% of all U.S. exports were to the above-mentioned top five foreign markets.

On the contrary, imports of scrap iron and steel were up slightly by 5.87% to $274.66 million in Jan-Feb ‘19. The U.S. imports had totaled only around $259.43 million during the similar two-month period in 2018. The primary supplier of scrap iron and steel to the US was Canada, with supplies totaling $157.7 million. The supplies from that country represented over 57% of all U.S. imports. The other major sources of import were Mexico ($38.75 million) and Sweden ($31.1 million).