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 41,622 mt in October 2019, up 11.6 percent from September and surging up 161.9 percent from October 2018 levels. By value, beam imports totaled $32.4 million in October 2019, compared to $29.2 million in the previous month and $14.3 million in the same month last year.
The US imported the most beams from Mexico in October, with 14,973 mt, compared to 9,893 mt in September and 3,610 mt in October 2018. Other top sources of imported beams in October include Korea, with 8,352 mt; Luxembourg, with 6,731 mt; Canada, with 5,332 mt; and Germany, with 2,106 mt.