The American Institute for International Steel (AIIS) reported Tuesday that exports of steel mill products in November declined over October by nearly five percent. "The overall decline reflects continuing weakness in NAFTA markets, which declined by over 10 percent or over 75,000 (net) tons month on month, greater than the total decline in exports for the month," said David Phelps, president, AIIS.
Total steel exports in November 2009 were 935,000 net tons, compared to 983,000 nt in October 2009, a 4.9 percent decrease, and a1.5 percent increase compared to November 2008. Year-to-date figures through the end of November show that exports decreased 34.5 percent compared to 2008, or from 12.8 million nt in 2008 to 8.4 million nt in 2009.
"Exports to non-NAFTA Western Hemisphere countries continued to show promise, increasing from October by 23.8 percent, with several markets showing sustained strength, such as the Dominican Republic, which has seen exports from the US increase by over 130 percent compared to 2008, which was a robust year for exports overall," said Mr. Phelps. "These data continue to suggest that the positive economic conditions outside of the NAFTA region will be important to the overall recovery of the domestic steel sector."