The value of metal scrap imported to Mexico decreased for the fifth consecutive month in July, dropping 46.6 percent, year over year, to $58 million, the lowest amount in the last 12 months, according to a SteelOrbis analysis of the data from the national statistics agency Inegi.
The consumption of scrap, local or imported, is related to steel production in Mexico and in the last eight months (from December 2022 to last July) production decreased 11.9 percent on a monthly average.
In the accumulated seven months as of July, the value of imported scrap totaled $724 million, 24.4 percent or $234 million less compared to the same period in 2022. For a similar period, it is the first percentage reduction in imports since 2020.
Scrap exports from the Mexican market in July broke the decreasing trend of the last nine months (since October 2022) and are now up 15.7 percent to $41 million. In the accumulated seven months, $257 million were exported, 22.9 percent less compared to the same period last year.