In 2009, despite a worldwide slump in steel production, exports of steel scrap from the United States continued to reach record levels, according to a statement released by Washington-based US law firm Wiley Rein LLP, summarizing the American Scrap Coalition's "Developments in Steel Scrap in 2009" report. In fact, in 2009 the United States exported nearly one-third of the scrap it produced, and was by far the largest exporter of scrap in the world.
China was the primary cause of the increase in scrap exports, said Alan Price, counsel to the American Scrap Coalition. "China and India each doubled their purchases of US scrap exports in 2009," Price said. "Despite the global economic downturn, China continued to fuel its growing excess capacity of steel production using US scrap." According to the report, China's steel scrap imports from the US amounted to 6.21 million metric tons in 2009, climbing by 120.82 percent year on year. These trends are continuing; scrap exports from the United States in 2010 are already about 14 percent higher than they were over the same period in 2009.
The report attributes rising US scrap exports in large part to restrictions on scrap exports by China, Russia, Ukraine and other countries. These restrictions artificially depress world scrap supply, driving up prices in both international markets and in the US. The report shows that China was the largest buyer of US scrap, with its scrap purchases doubling from 2008 to 2009. Other major importers of US scrap included Turkey (3.68 million mt), South Korea (3.11 million mt), Taiwan (2.23 million mt) and India (1.58 million mt).
Russia maintains export taxes on scrap that constitute a barrier to free trade and should be removed, Price said. "Russia has recently shown renewed interest in joining the World Trade Organization. However, one prerequisite of Russia's accession must be an end to export taxes, quotas, and restraints of any type on steel scrap or raw materials."
The American Scrap Coalition is a trade association of more than 3,000 consumers of steel scrap in the United States, including steel producers, foundries, and other users of scrap.