US HDG imports increase 13.9 percent in December

According to preliminary census data from the US Department of Commerce, US imports of HDG sheets and strip totaled 276,628 mt in December, up 13.9 percent from November and up 46.9 percent from December 2015 levels. By value, HDG imports totaled $229.2 million in December 2016, compared to $198.0 million in the previous month and $152.9 million in the same month last year.
 
The US imported the most HDG from Canada in December, with 65,301 mt, compared to 78,240 mt in November and 57,588 mt in December 2015. Other top sources of imported HDG in December include Taiwan, with 38,622 mt; South Africa, with 20,722; the UAE, with 20,148; Korea, with 19,760 mt; and Vietnam, with 17,889 mt.

 

For the full-year 2016, HDG imports to the US totaled 2,809,076 mt, down 7.7 percent from 2015. By value, US HDG imports in 2016 totaled $2.16 billion, compared to $2.60 billion in 2015.