Based on reported import licenses, US long steel products imports rose 39% year-on-year from 190,000 short tons in June 2018 to 264,000 tons in June 2019. The increase was mainly due to higher rebar and parallel flange sections imports, while wire rod and merchant bar imports declined June-on-June.
Based on January to May imports and June import licenses, long products imports in the first six months of 2019 were 5% lower than in the same period last year, with the highest volume declines coming from merchant bar (-50% on last year), parallel flange sections (-11%), structural angles & channles (-47%), and light shapes (-32%).
SIMA long products imports licenses
January 2013 to June 2019
short tons
Image from Wikimedia Commons by Idus Druida [Public domain] at https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Palanquilla.jpg
Based on reported import licenses, US flat steel products imports fell 8% from 642,000 short tons in May to 588,000 tons in June. Compared to June imports last year, June 2019 licenses show a 21% drop, with the largest decline coming from hot dip galvanized imports, down 36%.
Based on January to May imports and June licenses, flat products imports so far this year are 22% lower than in the first six months of 2018, with imports of hot roll down 26%, cold roll down 22%, hot dip galvanized down 20% and cut plate down 7%.
Worldsteel reported crude steel production in China at 89.1 million metric tonnes in May, 10.0% higher than in May 2018. Chinese output over the first five months of 2018 was 10.2% higher than in the same period last year.
China’s General Administration of Customs reported Chinese net finished steel exports (exports minus imports) in May at 4.8 million tonnes, 17.2% lower than in May 2018. Net exports in the first five months of 2019 were 5.9% higher than in the first five months of 2018.
China monthly crude steel production 2006 to 2019
Thousand metric tonnes
Photo of Beipanjiang Highway Suspension Bridge by Glabb [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]
China accounted for 55% of world output in May with production of 89.1 million tonnes, 10.0% higher than in May 2018. Asian output outside of China rose 0.6%, with increased production in India (+5.1%) offsetting a decline in Japan (-4.6%).
European Union production fell 2.8%, mainly due to a 6.2% decline in Germany and a 7.6% drop in France. In North America, US production rose 5.4%, Canadian output rose 12.8%, but Mexican production fell 4.1%. Other important changes around the world include an 8.0% production drop in Turkey and a 20.7% increase in Vietnam.
Photo of tool steel ingot casting at Uddeholms AB, Hagfors, Sweden by Uddeholms AB from Wikimedia Commons
Based on reported import licenses, US long steel products imports fell 29% from 432,000 short tons in May 2018 to 307,000 tons in May 2019. The decline was mainly due to lower wire rod and rebar imports. Parallel flange sections are the only product category showing higher import licenses this May compared to last year’s imports, with volumes increasing 31%.
Based on January to April imports and May import licenses, long products imports in the first five months of 2019 were 12% lower than in the same period last year, with imports of all product categories down except for wire rod, which rose 2%.
SIMA long products import licenses
January 2013 to May 2019
short tons
Photo by MTA Capital Construction Mega Projects [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)]
Based on reported import licenses, US flat steel products imports fell 19.0% from 749,000 short tons in April to 607,000 tons in May. Import licenses indicate imports dropping for all product categories in May, but the highest volume decline comes from hot roll imports due to lower licenses from South Korea, Japan, and Canada.
Based on January to April imports and May import licenses, flat products imports so far this year are 22.8% lower than in the first five months of 2018, with imports of hot roll down 28.7%, cold roll down 24.3%, hot dip galvanized down 16.7% and cut plate down 7.1%.
SIMA US flat products import licenses
January 2013 to May 2019
short tons
Photo “Storing Coils 4” at Ipatinga, Minas Gerais, Brazil from Worldsteel Image Library, Image ID 1000
