Steel shipments up 4.1 % in January

Washington, DC— The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported that for the month of January 2005, U.S. steel mills shipped 8,791,000 net tons, a 3.2 percent decrease from the 9,082,000 net tons shipped in January 2004, and a 4.1 percent increase from the 8,447,000 net tons shipped in the previous month, December 2004.

A year-to-year comparison of year-to-date shipments shows the following changes within major market classifications: service centers and distributors, down 1.7 percent; automotive, up 5.5 percent; construction and contractors’ products, down 12.7 percent; oil and gas, up 22.7 percent; machinery, industrial equipment and tools, up 2.4 percent; appliances, utensils and cutlery, down 6.5 percent; containers, packaging and shipping materials, down 9.3 percent; and electrical equipment, up 0.4 percent.