Apparent steel supply remains strong through September

The volume of finished steel entering the US market grew in September, driven primarily by higher domestic mill shipments, according to SMU’s analysis of US Department of Commerce and American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) data. This “apparent steel supply” metric is calculated by combining domestic mill shipments with finished US steel imports then subtracting total US exports.

September supply increased 1%, or 94,000 short tons (st), from August to 8.64 million st and was 7% higher than the same month one year prior. Strong domestic shipments were the primary contributor to supply this month, more than compensating for the decline in finished imports. September supply is about 110,000 st higher than the average supply rate seen over the past year.

Brett Linton

Brett Linton is a digital operations analyst for Steel Market Update, where he began his career. Linton has been in the steel industry since 2010. He has held roles as a category manager and strategic insights director at Reibus before returning to SMU in 2024. He is a graduate of The University of North Georgia with a degree in Finance and Accounting. Brett can be reached at brett@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-314-0179.