US steel exports dropped in April 2009, from both the prior month, and from the same month of last year, the latest data shows.
The latest data from the US Department of Commerce shows that the US exported a total of 560,212 mt (617,000 nt) of steel in April 2009. This figure is down roughly 12 percent from March exports, and down 43 percent compared to April 2008.
Exports to fellow NAFTA countries accounted for the bulk of all US steel exports in April, with Canada and Mexico receiving 311,068 mt and 127,356 mt respectively, although year-to-date figures through April show steel exports to Canada and Mexico are off by about 37 percent from last year. YTD through April, total US steel exports are off by 38 percent from last year.
The only region to which US steel exports rose on a YTD basis was Africa. While accounting for only three percent of total steel exports (or about 75,000 mt) YTD April, US steel exports to Africa through April were up 74 percent from the same period of last year.
Commenting on the April export data, David Phelps, president of the American Institute for International Steel, commented, “Whether these one month data are the beginning of a trend is too soon to tell.”