Shipments and Supply of Steel Products Slip in February

Mill shipments of steel products fell 9.8% month on month in February, while apparent supply was down by 12.5% during the same period. This is the first noticeable decrease in both apparent supply and shipments of steel since the market reached bottom back in May 2020. Mill shipments were down by 13.1% year on year, while supply trailed February 2020 totals by 11.2%. This data provides further clarity to the extended lead times and lack of supply that has failed to meet rising demand, and consequently has ballooned steel prices to historic levels.

This analysis is based on steel mill shipment data from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) and import-export data from the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC). The analysis summarizes total steel supply by product from 2008 through February 2021 and year-on-year changes.

David Schollaert

David Schollaert is deputy editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. He can be contacted at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.