Through the first two months of 2020, total and finished steel imports totalled 4.65Mt (net tons) and 2.99Mt (net tons), down 21.3% and 28.7%, respectively, versus the same period in 2019. Annualised total and finished steel imports in 2020 would be 27.9Mt and 18Mt (net tons), unchanged and down 14.7%, respectively when compared with last year’s figures.

Finished steel import market share was an estimated 15% in February and is estimated at 16% over the first two months of 2020.

Key finished steel products with a significant import increase in February compared to January are heavy structural shapes (up 57%) and tin plate (up 15%). A product with a significant year-to-date (YTD) increase versus the same period in 2019 was mechanical tubing (up 12%).

In February the largest volumes of finished steel imports from offshore were from South Korea (158kt, down 13% from January final); Turkey (73kt NT, up 44%), Japan (69kt NT, down 9%); Germany (52kt NT, up 7%); and Brazil (37kt NT, down 58%).

For the first two months of 2020, the largest offshore suppliers were South Korea (340kt NT, down 38% compared with the same period in 2019), Japan (146kt NT, down 37%); Brazil (126kt NT, down 16%), Turkey (124kt NT, up 23%) and Germany (100kt NT, down 54%).

-Spring Industry Exhibition, spring expo, 2021 Spring exhibition, 2021 Spring expo, China Spring exhibition, China Spring expo, steel spring exhibition, steel spring expo, Springs Industry Exhibition, springs expo, 2021 Springs exhibition, 2021 Springs expo, China Springs exhibition, China Springs expo, steel springs exhibition, steel springs expo