Steel imports rise sharply

Washington, DC— Based on preliminary Census Bureau data, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported that the U.S. imported a total of 2,519,000 net tons (NT) of steel in March, including 2,013,000 NT of finished steel. Imports in these categories rose 2.0 and 10.2 percent, respectively, compared to February 2005. Several key product areas were up significantly, including: plates in coils (up 56 percent); tin plate (up 49 percent); hot rolled sheet (up 27 percent); galvanized (hot-dipped) sheet & strip (up 18 percent); and cold rolled sheet (up 17 percent).