December steel shipments down 45.7% from previous year

The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported that for the month of December 2008, United States steel mills shipped 4,617,000 net tons, a 45.7 percent decrease from the 8,495,000 net tons shipped in December 2007 and an 11.6 percent decrease from the 5,223,000 net tons shipped in the previous month, November 2008.

A year-to-year comparison of year-to-date shipments shows the following changes within major market classifications: service centers and distributors, down 6.2 percent; automotive, down 11.2 percent; construction and contractors’ products, down 11.6 percent; and oil and gas, up 5.6 percent.