The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) announced Thursday that based on preliminary Census Bureau data, the US imported 2.1 million net tons (nt) of finished steel in June, down 5 percent from May final data. Even with the overall decline in June, finished steel import market share in June was an estimated 24 percent and 22 percent year-to-date. In particular, year-to-date finished steel imports of rebar, oil country goods and hot rolled bars saw the most substantial increasing, jumping 55, 41 and 33 percent, respectively over the first six months of 2010.
Key finished steel products with significant import increases in June compared to May were cut-to-length plate (up 19 percent), line pipe (up 18 percent), heavy structural shapes (up 17 percent) and cold rolled sheets (up 17 percent).
In commenting on June import levels, Thomas J. Gibson, AISI president and CEO, stated that, "An import market share of 24 percent in the context of significant underutilized domestic steel capacity is substantial. There has also been a trend of rising finished steel imports from offshore --especially Asia--in recent months. These developments underscore the need for the US government to vigorously enforce our laws against injurious dumped and subsidized imports."