[Steel Import]US steel import permit applications jump 4% in July

By Paul Ploumis 06 Aug 2015 Last updated at 00:31:36 GMT

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Based on preliminary Census Bureau data, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported today that steel import permit applications for the month of July this year totaled 3,241,000 net tons (NT). The permit tons witnessed a jump of 4% from the 3,112,000 net tons (NT) recorded during June ’15 and 6% up from June ’15 preliminary imports of 3,049,000 NT.

Year-to-date (YTD) total and finished steel imports are 24,911,000 and 20,370,000 net tons (NT), respectively, down 0.2% and up 9% respectively, vs. the same period in 2014. Finished steel import market share was estimated at 27% in July.

Key finished steel products with a significant import increase in July compared to June are standard rails (up 345%), reinforcing bars (up 137%), cold rolled sheets (up 18%), heavy structural shapes (up 15%) and hot dipped galvanized sheets and strip (up 13%).

The major products that recorded significant rise in import volumes year-to-date in comparison with the similar seven-month period in 2014 are line pipe (up 55%), reinforcing bars (up 53%), standard pipe (up 32%), sheets and strip galvanized hot dipped (up 20%), tin plate (up 15%), plates in coils (up 14%), heavy structural shapes (up 13%), cold rolled sheets (up 13%) and cut lengths plates (up 12%).

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In July, the largest volumes of finished steel imports from offshore were from South Korea (298,000 NT, down 1% from June preliminary), Turkey (269,000 NT up 48%), China (262,000 NT, up 48%), Japan (149,000, down 26%) and Germany (149,000 NT, down 2%).

The largest offshore suppliers for the initial seven-month period of the year were South Korea (3,345,000 NT, up 6% from the same period in 2014), Turkey (1,898,000 NT, up 73%) and China (1,770,000, down 1%).

Courtesy: American Iron and Steel Institute