Inventories at US steel service centers continued to decline in November, though months of supply on hand rose slightly from October due to seasonal demand decline, according to the Metals Activity Report (MAR) from the Metals Service Center Institute (MSCI).
MSCI reported this week that the MAR showed that US service centers' steel product inventories at the end of November totaled nearly 12.1 million net tons (nt), 27 percent lower than year-ago levels and the lowest since November 1997, when inventories totaled 11.8 million nt. At current shipping rates, inventories at the end of November represented a 3.8-month supply, compared with the 2.6-month supply at the end of October.
Steel shipments from US service centers totaled 3.99 million nt in November, down 7.8 percent from November 2006. Year-to-date steel shipments through November totaled 48.8 million nt, down 7 percent from a year ago.
Canadian steel service center inventories were also lower than in the same month of the previous year, said MSCI, with stocks at the end of November totaling 1.13 million nt, down 12.4 percent from November 2006 supplies. At current shipping rates, Canadian steel inventories were sufficient for 3.5 months, compared to a 4.0-month supply a year ago.
Steel shipments from Canadian service centers totaled 321,400 nt in November, down 0.3 percent from year-ago shipments, and falling from year-ago levels for the 16th consecutive month.
The MAR, based on data from metals service centers in the United States and Canada, is produced by the Metals Service Center Institute and a third-party econometrics and strategy firm, McCoy, Scott & Co.