Metals imports remain cause for concern
Metals imports remain cause for concern
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The amount of finished or semi-finished steel, labeled as “steel mill products” by the United States Department of Commerce, imported into the U.S. climbed to nearly 3.18 million metric tons in March 2017. It was the first monthly figure above 3.0 million metric tons since April 2015.
According to the Commerce Department, the March 2017 volume marks a 28.7 percent spike from the 2.47 million metric tons imported the month before. That February 2017 total was more in line with monthly averages dating back to October 2015.
Commerce Department import licensing data for March indicates about 780,000 metric tons of the imported steel (about 24.5 percent) came from NAFTA trading partners Canada and Mexico. Brazil, South Korea, Turkey and Russia were the non-NAFTA nations who sent more than 240,000 metric tons of steel into the U.S. in March. While China’s steel output number receives considerable attention globally, it ranked just 12th on the U.S.’s March import list at 57,000 metric tons.
Testifying before Congress in late March 2017, Roger Newport, the CEO of Ohio-based AK Steel, commented, “Imports continue to take about 26 percent of the U.S. market share – well above historical levels. Meanwhile, domestic raw steelmaking capacity utilization has remained depressed with current levels still below 75 percent and thousands of employees still on layoff. As such, we encourage the Administration and Congress to continue the pursuit of strong trade enforcement and aggressive trade diplomacy, and to enact legislation to further address unfair foreign trade practices.”
In the nonferrous sector, an online report prepared by Reuters spelled out trade concerns among aluminum producers regarding China’s ability to flood the global market. According to Reuters, China’s output of aluminum has “rebounded more than 20 percent for the first two months of 2017” compared to where it stood in early 2016.
Industry analysts and overseas producers are watching to see whether the output boost coincides with a wave of increased exports, or whether the finished and semi-finished aluminum will stay in China as a stockpile in anticipation of expected pollution-related smelter closures that could occur later in 2017.
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Source: Recycling Today
Metals imports remain cause for concern
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