According to census data from the US Department of Commerce, US imports of heavy structural shapes (including U, I, H, L, and T section beams) totaled 34,767 mt in September 2018, up 4.6 percent from August but down 41.9 percent from September 2017 levels. By value, beam imports totaled $26.2 million in September 2018, compared to $26.1 million in the previous month and $39.9 million in the same month last year.
The US imported the most beams from Luxembourg in September, with 13,118 mt, compared to 5,178 mt in August and 13,086 mt in September 2017. Other top sources of imported beams in September include Taiwan, with 4,919 mt; Korea, with 3,855 mt; Turkey, with 3,390 mt; Mexico, with 2,974 mt; and Canada, with 2,662 mt.