June Import Market Share for Sheet and Plate Products

Steel demand remains strong, outpacing supplies in the U.S. and causing prices to continue escalating. The trend is attracting more imports as customers look overseas for price and supply relief. June data shows imports of most steel products have risen over the past two months as imports’ share of total sheet product shipments rose to 16.2%, up from 15.5% the month prior and the highest level in 13 months. The market share of plate product imports in June rose to 19.8%, nearly reaching the recent two-year high of 19.9% seen in April.

Imports’ share of domestic sheet product shipments hit its lowest level in more than a decade at 9.7% at the beginning of 2020. Since then, except for a slight contraction in April, sheet imports into the U.S. have risen month on month. Shipments of sheet products by domestic mills were flat in June, while imports of sheet products rose 5.8%, following a 28.8% surge the month prior that pushed imports’ share to 16.2%.

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.