According to the Mineral Industry Survey released by the US Geological Survey (USGS), stocks of imported and domestic scrap in the US at the end of April this year amounted to 3.7 million mt, increasing by four percent from the end of March and down 0.5 percent year on year. Total consumption of iron and steel scrap in the US amounted to 4.3 million mt in April, decreasing 3.4 percent from March this year and down 8.3 percent compared to April 2012.
In April this year, exports of iron and steel scrap from the US amounted to 980,000 mt, decreasing 48 percent from March and down 50.25 percent compared to April 2012. The value of these exports decreased by 50 percent compared to March and by 47 percent year on year, falling to $436 million. In April, Turkey was replaced by Taiwan as the leading scrap export destination of the US, with Turkey importing just 50,000 mt and recording a strong fall compared to the 564,000 mt imported in March. Meanwhile, Taiwan imported 242,000 mt of scrap from the US, down 11 percent month on month.
US imports of iron and steel scrap in April amounted to 283,000 mt, decreasing by 18.4 percent year on year. The value of these imports was $107 million, down 30 percent from the previous month. Canada was the leading country of origin, exporting 236,000 mt of iron and steel scrap to the US in April.