Steel imports decrease by five percent in February

Based on preliminary Census Bureau data, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported that the United States imported a total of 1,574,000 net tons (NT) of steel in February, including 1,214,000 NT of finished steel (down 5 percent and 6 percent, respectively, vs. January final data). Finished steel import market share was an estimated 18 percent in February.

Key finished steel products with increases in February 2010 compared to January include reinforcing bar (109 percent), wire rods (45 percent) and hot rolled sheets (9 percent).

In February, the largest volumes of finished steel imports from offshore were from South Korea (98,000 NT, down 35 percent), Japan (112,000 NT, up 38 percent), China (46,000 NT, down 31 percent), Italy (48,000 NT, down 5 percent) and Australia (48,000 NT, up 73 percent).