According to final census data from the US Department of Commerce, US imports of heavy structural shapes (including U, I, H, L, and T section beams) totaled 21,285 mt in November 2019, down 48.9 percent from October and down 20.4 percent from November 2018 levels. By value, beam imports totaled $16.2 million in November 2019, compared to $32.4 million in the previous month and $20.2 million in the same month last year.
The US imported the most beams from Mexico in November, with 9,427 mt, compared to 14,973 mt in October and 8,812 mt in November 2018. Other top sources of imported beams in November include Korea, with 5,273 mt; Canada, with 3,729 mt; and Germany, with 1,237 mt.