The American Institute for International Steel (AIIS) reported Monday that steel exports from the US decreased marginally, by 0.7 percent, in October compared to September, with total exports to Asia registering the largest decrease, at 34.4 percent for the month.
Total steel exports in October 2009, reported AIIS, were 983,000 net tons, compared to 990,000 nt in September 2009, a 0.7 percent decrease, and a 23.7 percent decrease compared to October 2008. According to year-to-date figures, exports decreased 37.3 percent compared to 2008 or from 11.8 million nt in 2008 to 7.5 million nt in 2009.
"Exports of semifinished products to China drove the 107 increase overall in exports to China for the month. These slabs exports augmented hot capacity of the Chinese mills and reflect strong economic growth in China," said David Phelps, president, AIIS.
"There is some good news in the data for October, with exports to the NAFTA region continuing their improvement, up nine percent for the month, and non-NAFTA Western Hemisphere exports up also 7.8 percent. These data suggest that some countries and regions have shed the recession and have returned to growth," concluded Phelps.