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 45,702 mt in January 2022, up 19.2 percent from December and up 11.7 percent from January 2021 levels. By value, beam imports totaled $52.7 million in January 2022, compared to $47.9 million in December and $27.1 million in January 2021.
The US imported the most beams from Mexico in January, with 14,343 mt, compared to 8,113 mt in December and 10,824 mt in January 2021. Other top sources of imported beams in January include Luxembourg, with 11,458 mt; Canada, with 8,205 mt; UAE, with 3,952 mt; and Germany, with 3,443 mt.