Steel Products Prices North America

February Apparent Steel Supply at 14 Month Low
Written by Brett Linton
April 9, 2015
According to the latest data released from the US Department of Commerce and the American Iron and Steel Institute, apparent steel supply for the month of February 2015 is 8,968,831 net tons. Apparent steel supply is calculated by adding domestic steel shipments and finished US steel imports and subtracting total US steel exports.
February supply represents a 33,870 ton or 0.4 percent decrease compared to the same month one year ago. Although finished imports increased 633,441 tons (27.7 percent) and exports declined 25,472 tons (2.8 percent) during this period, it was all negated by a 692,784 ton (9.1 percent) drop in domestic shipments. The net trade balance between imports and exports was a surplus of 2,832,882 tons in February, an increase of 18.9 percent from the same month last year.
SMU Note: Our Premium Level apparent steel supply analysis goes into more detail as we provide data on apparent steel supply for flat and long products. We plan to publish this analysis in the next few days.
When compared to last month when apparent steel supply was at 10,422,485 tons, February supply decreased by 1,453,654 tons or 13.9 percent. The month over month decline is mostly attributed to a 837,146 ton or 10.8 percent decline in domestic shipments and a 663,276 ton or 18.5 percent drop in finished imports.
On a year-to-date basis, the 2015 averages are mixed in comparison to previous years. Since the 2015 averages are only based off of two months, and the previous years are over the entire year, the graphic below should be take with a grain of salt.
You can view the interactive graphic of our Apparent Steel Supply history below when you are logged into the website and reading the newsletter online. If you need help accessing or navigating the website, don’t hesitate to contact us at info@SteelMarketUpdate.com or 800-432-3475.
{amchart id=”120″ Apparent Steel Supply- Domestic Shipments, Semi-Fin Imports, Exports}

Brett Linton
Read more from Brett LintonLatest in Steel Products Prices North America

SMU Price Ranges: Some predict bottom is near as big discounts dry up
Sheet prices were mixed this week as some mills continued to offer significant discounts to larger buyers while others have shifted toward being more disciplined, market participants said.

SMU Price Ranges: Tags mixed as uncertainty weighs on market
SMU’s hot-rolled (HR) coil price held steady this week while prices for other sheet and plate products declined.

Nucor spot HR list price unchanged at $875/ton
Nucor kept its weekly list price for hot-rolled (HR) coil unchanged this week, following a price bump of $10 per short ton (st) last week.

SMU price ranges: Flat-rolled balloon continues to leak
Sheet and plate prices were flat or lower again this week on continued concerns about demand and higher production rates among US mills.

HRC vs. busheling spread narrows in August
The price spread between prime scrap and hot-rolled coil (HRC) narrowed in August, according to SMU’s most recent pricing data.