The US imported a total of 1.3mn nt (1.17mn mt) of steel in August representing a 51.9pc drop compared to July. This total is comprised of 1.19mn nt of finished steel, a 13.9pc decline against July, according to the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).
For the first eight months of this year, total steel imports reached 16.4mn nt, a 20.7pc decrease, and finished steel imports were 11.21mn nt, a 26.9pc drop compared to the first eight months of 2019.
Total steel imports annualized in 2020 decrease by 11.9pc to 24.6mn nt and finished steel imports fell by 20.1pc to 16.8mn nt compared with the prior-year period. The import market share for finished steel was assessed at 17pc in August and assessed at 19pc for the first eight months of 2020.
The largest finished steel importers in August were South Korea at 112,000nt, down 29pc; Japan at 55,000nt, increased 9pc; Germany at 50,000nt, increased 8pc; Turkey at 46,000nt, down 11pc; and The Netherlands at 36,000nt, down 14pc, all against July final data.
For the first eight months of 2020, the largest suppliers were South Korea at 1.39mn nt, down 26pc; Japan at 539,000nt, down 43pc; Germany at 473,000nt, down 38pc; Turkey at 420,000nt, increased 89pc; and Taiwan at 404,000nt, down 40pc, all compared to the same period in 2019.