US Jan. shipments up from Dec., down from Jan. '06

The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reported Monday that during the month of January 2007, US steel mills shipped a total of 8,614,000 net tons, a 3.5 percent decrease from the 8,918,000 net tons shipped in January 2006, and a 13.2 increase from the 7,609,000 net tons shipped in December 2006. Compared to January 2006, there were the following changes in shipments within major market classifications: service centers and distributors, down 8.9 percent; automotive, down 4.2 percent; construction and contractors' products, up 5.1 percent; oil and gas, down 4.0 percent; machinery, industrial equipment and tools, down 5.1 percent; appliances, utensils and cutlery, down 9.9 percent; containers, packaging and shipping materials, down 9.3 percent; and electrical equipment, down 11.9 percent. AISI is comprised of 32 member companies, including integrated and electric furnace steelmakers, and 125 associate and affiliate members who are suppliers to or customers of the steel industry, representing more than 75 percent of both the US and North American steel capacity.