Steel Import Permits Drop 3% in April
05/07/2010 - Steel import permit applications totaled 1,968,000 net tons for the month of April, a 3% decrease from the 2,027,000 permit tons recorded in March according to the latest report from AISI.
Steel import permit applications totaled 1,968,000 net tons for the month of April, according to the latest report from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).
The AISI report, which is based on the Commerce Department’s most recent Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis (SIMA) data, shows that the April total reflects a 3% decrease from the 2,027,000 permit tons recorded in March and no change from the March preliminary imports total of 1,971,000 net tons.
April import permit tonnage for finished steel was 1,597,000 net tons, a 5% decrease from the 1,679,000 permit tons recorded in March and a 2% increase from the March preliminary imports total of 1,568,000 net tons. Finished steel import market share in April is estimated at 20% (vs. less than 15% in August of last year).
March total steel import permit tons would annualize at 21,548,000 net tons, up 33% from the 16,215,000 net tons imported in 2009. Finished steel import permit tons would annualize at 17,018,000 net tons, up 20% from the 14,179,000 net tons imported in 2009.
In April, the largest finished steel import permit applications for offshore countries were for Korea (168,000 net tons, up 54% from March), Japan (91,000 net tons, down 33%), Turkey (87,000 net tons, up 77%), Germany (81,000 net tons, down 2%) and China (56,000 net tons, down 3%).
Finished steel import permits for major product categories that registered significant increases in April vs. the March preliminary include
- Sheet and strip, all other metallic coated, + 91%
- Reinforcing bar, + 97%
- Heavy structural shapes, + 77%
- Line pipe, + 25%
- Plates in coils, + 19%
- Cut-length plates, + 18%
“Our primary concern regarding steel imports is the fact that with domestic capacity utilization still lagging below 75%, we nevertheless see imports claiming 20% of market share,” said AISI president and CEO Thomas J. Gibson, commenting on the April SIMA data. “We continue to monitor very closely the import numbers and urge our government to be vigilant regarding any surges of unfairly traded steel into the U.S. market.”
AISI serves as the voice of the North American steel industry in the public policy arena and advances the case for steel in the marketplace as the preferred material of choice. AISI also plays a lead role in the development and application of new steels and steelmaking technology. The Institute comprises 24 member companies, including integrated and electric furnace steelmakers, and 138 associate and affiliate members who are suppliers to or customers of the steel industry.
