The USA imported 2.9Mt (net tons) of steel in October 2015, including 2.2Mt of finished steel, up 5.4% and 1.4% respectively when compared with September 2015 figures.
The figures are based on Census Bureau data.
Year-to-date figures for the first 10 months of 2015 total 33.8Mt of total steel imports and 27.4Mt of finished steel, down 8% and 2% respectively when compared with 2014 figures.
The annualised total and finished steel imports for 2015 will be 40.7Mt and 32.9Mt respectively. In October, the USA’s finished steel import market share was estimated at 26% with the year-to-date figure standing at 30%.
October rebar imports were up 97% when compared with September, sheets and strip ‘and all other coated’ products were up 46%, heavy structural shapes were up 33%, wire rods, up 29% and hot-rolled sheets 24%.
Major products with significant year-to-date import increases when compared with the same period last year include rebar (up 47%), line pipe (up 25%), standard pipe (up 20%), tin plate (up 12%), and wire drawn (up 10%).
The largest volume of finished steel imports coming into the USA in October came from South Korea (353kt) followed by Turkey (287kt), Brazil (143kt), Japan (134kt) and Taiwan (130kt).
For the first 10 months of 2015 the sources were roughly the same with South Korea down 6% at 4.3Mt, Turkey up 36% at 2.4Mt, China down 20% at 2.1Mt, Japan up 10% at 1.9Mt and Germany up 31% at 1.3Mt.
