US steel mill exports creeping higher

Dec 16, 2010 | 12:20 PM |

U.S. steel exports increased slightly in October for the third consecutive month.

Steel mill exports totaled 902,704 tonnes (995,060 net tons), up 0.7 percent from September and 1.2 percent higher than in October 2009, according to the latest statistics from the U.S. Commerce Department's International Trade Administration. Exports reached a 2010 peak of 1,044,060 tonnes (1,150,879 tons) in March before declining to 813,261 tonnes (896,467 tons) in July.

A 16.3-percent jump in exports to Mexico was the primary reason for the small gain in October, David Phelps, president of the American Institute for International Steel (AIIS), Washington, said.

Steel exports in the first 10 months of this year totaled about 10.1 million tons, up 35.6 percent from 7.4 million tons in the same 2009 period, Phelps said, noting that "many markets for American-made steel consume high-value products, such as the Asian market, whose imports of American steel were nearly 40 percent either alloy or stainless products."....