Total Steel Import Permits Increase 20% in March
04/08/2010 - Steel import permit applications totaled 1,971, 000 net tons for the month of March, a 20% increase from the 1,644,000 permit tons recorded in February according to the latest report from AISI.
Steel import permit applications totaled 1,971, 000 net tons for the month of March, 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 March total reflects a 20% increase from the 1,644,000 permit tons recorded in February and a 25% increase from the February preliminary imports total of 1,574,000 net tons.
March import permit tonnage for finished steel was 1,627,000 net tons, a 27% increase from the 1,278,000 permit tons recorded in February and a 34% increase from the February preliminary imports total of 1,214,000 net tons. The (March vs. February) gain in apparent steel demand was 14%, while the gain in and domestic production was 10%. Finished steel import market share in March is estimated at 20%.
March total steel import permit tons would annualize at 20,826,000 net tons, up 28% from the 16,215,000 net tons imported in 2009. Finished steel import permit tons would annualize at 16,504,000 net tons, up 16% from the 14,179,000 net tons imported in 2009.
“Over the past two quarters, domestic steel capacity utilization has been on the rise, but only to a level slightly above 70 percent,” said AISI President and CEO Thomas J. Gibson, commenting on the March SIMA data. “At the same time, steel imports and import market share have been rising at a faster rate. America’s economy, manufacturing base and steel market are only now at the beginning stages of a slow and fragile recovery. Our focus must remain on ensuring that this recovery is not undermined by foreign dumping, subsidies, currency manipulation and other unfair trade practices.”
In March, the largest finished steel import permit applications for offshore countries were for Korea (142,000 net tons, up 45% from February), Japan (133,000 net tons, up 20%), Germany (119,000 net tons, up 347%), China (63,000 net tons, up 39%) and Australia (57,000 net tons, up 18%).
Finished steel import permits for major product categories that registered significant increases in March vs. the February preliminary include
- Cut-length plates, +151%
- Standard rails, +114%
- Heavy structural shapes, +114%
- Oil country goods, +88%
- Plates in coils, +57%
- Hot dip galvanized sheets and strip, +50%
- Tin plate, +42%
- Hot rolled bars, +38%
- Line pipe, +27%
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.
