Steel import permit applications reached a total of 2,082,000 net tons for the month of August, according to the latest report from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). The August total represents a 15% decrease from the 2,436,000 permit tons recorded in July and a 14% decrease from the July preliminary imports total of 2,415,000 net tons.
The report, which is based on the Commerce Department’s most recent Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis (SIMA) data, shows that the August total included finished steel import permit tonnage of
1,623,000 net tons, down 10% from the preliminary imports total of 1,797,000 net tons in July.
August total steel import permit tons would annualize at 24,305,000 net tons, up 49% from the 16,215,000 net tons imported in 2009. August finished steel import permit tons would annualize at 18,912,000 net tons, up 33% from the 14,179,000 net tons imported in 2009.
In August, the largest finished steel import permit applications for offshore countries were for Korea (189,000 net tons, down 4% from July), Japan (148,000 net tons, up 19%), Turkey (103,000 net tons, up 110%), China (101,000 net tons, up 8%) and Taiwan (73,000 net tons, up 172%). This was the first month import permit tonnage for China has exceeded 100,000 net tons since May 2009. Finished steel import market share was 20% in August and 21 % for the year-to-date.
Finished steel import permits for major product categories that registered significant increases in August vs. the July preliminary include sheet and strip all other metallic coatings (up 76%), reinforcing bar (up 59%) and hot rolled bars (up 15%).
“While finished steel imports receded in August, they remain at a 20 percent market share in the context of uncertainty about the strength and stability of our economic recovery and substantial underutilized domestic steel capacity,” said AISI President and CEO Thomas J. Gibson, commenting on the August SIMA data. “Given this uncertainty, it is more important than ever that steel producers in the United States remain vigilant regarding dumped and subsidized imports and any efforts to evade U.S. antidumping and countervailing duty orders.”
AISI serves as the voice of the North American steel industry in the public policy arena and advances the case for steel in the marketplace as the preferred material of choice. AISI also plays a lead role in the development and application of new steels and steelmaking technology. The Institute comprises 23 member companies, including integrated and electric furnace steelmakers, and 138 associate and affiliate members who are suppliers to or customers of the steel industry.