US Ferrous scrap exports declined 5% in September

By Paul Ploumis

SPOKANE (Scrap Monster): The US Commerce Department data for the month of September this year indicates marginal decline in ferrous scrap exports by the country. The exports declined by nearly 5% in comparison with the same month a year before. However, the cumulative exports during the initial nine months of the current year were up by 9% when matched with the year before.

The country’s ferrous scrap exports receded from the highs of 1.295 million tons recorded in August to 1.12 million tons in September. The shipments out of the country dropped significantly by over 13% month-on-month. When matched with the exports during September last year, the US ferrous scrap exports during Sep ’16 were down by 4.7%. The year-to-date exports totaled 9.095 million tons during the initial nine months of the current year. The total value of exports was up by 8.5% year-on-year to $299.4 million during January-September 2016.

The largest importer of US ferrous scrap during the month was Turkey. The imports by Turkey from the US totaled 268,000 tons, accounting for almost one-fourth of the total shipments out of the US. The second largest destination of US scrap exports was Mexico. The Mexican imports totaled 188,000 tons. In third place was Taiwan with total imports of 126,000 tons during the month.

Exports-Aug ‘16

The country’s ferrous scrap exports rebounded sharply from the lows of 870,772 tons recorded in July to 1.295 million tons in August. The shipments out of the country surged higher by 48.8% month-on-month.

The largest importer of US ferrous scrap during the month was Turkey. The imports by Turkey imports from the US totaled 2.033 million tonnes, accounting for more than one-fourth of the total shipments out of the US. Turkish buyers reported drop in purchases during the eight-month period in 2016. The Turkish imports declined by 17.5% when compared with those during January to August in 2015. The second largest destination of US scrap exports was Mexico. The Mexican imports totaled 966,334 tonnes, increasing significantly by 44% from the imports during the corresponding period last year. In third place was Taiwan with total imports of 892,854 tonnes during the eight-month period. The imports by Taiwan plunged 35% year-on-year.

Exports-July ’16

In July ’16, the US exported 870,772 tons of steel scrap. The export volumes were down marginally by 3.3% over the previous year. The largest importer of US ferrous scrap during the month was Turkey. Turkish scrap imports from the country totaled 217,154 tonnes. The second largest destination of US scrap exports was Mexico. The Mexican imports totaled 150,967 tonnes. In third place was Taiwan with total imports of 139,715 tonnes during the month.

Exports-June ’16

The US exported 1.034 million tons of scrap. When compared with the prior month, the exports were down by 21.5%. The June ’16 scrap exports were down by 12.1% over the previous year. The value of exports witnessed over 18% year-on-year decline to total $3.328 billion. The largest buyer of US scrap during the month was Mexico. The imports by Mexico totaled 222,579 tonnes. The other key destinations of US exports were Kuwait (133,122 tonnes), Taiwan (90,643 tons), Peru (89,277 tons) and Turkey (88,028 tons).

The most recent data released by the US Department of Commerce and the Bureau of Census says that the country’s yearly scrap exports have almost halved from 24.508 million mt in 2011 to as low as 12.768 million mt in 2015.

Meantime, the domestic US H1 scrap prices averaged at $206.83 per long ton, as on 14th November, 2016. The prices climbed higher by $1.66 per long ton when compared with the previous week.

The H1 scrap average price in Pittsburg was $214.50 per long ton.  The average price increased by $6 per long ton when compared with the previous week’s price. In Chicago the prices averaged at $217.50, remaining flat over the previous week. The average price in Philadelphia was $188.50 per long ton. The prices here held steady when compared with the week before.