U.S. Steel Merchant Final Imports: Merchant final imports to the U.S. came in at 28,802 tons in May 2020, relatively flat month-over-month (MoM).

Figure 1 further breaks down total merchant final imports from January 2019 – April 2020. When looking at the current year, it shows that merchant imports peaked in January 2020 with 35,865 tons of imports reported.

Figure 2 charts the largest exporting countries in rank order through May 2020.  Mexico and Canada combined account for 73% of the total this month. Mexico was the largest exporter with 15,460 tons; Canadian imports came in at 5,568 tons in May 2020.

Figure 3 charts the largest imports by district of entry into the U.S. in rank order through May 2020. Laredo, TX was the largest receiver of merchants in May 2020, receiving 10,112 tons of the total 28,802 (35%). The Detroit, MI port was the second-largest receiver coming in at 5,352 tons and El Paso, TX was the third-largest receiver coming in at 4,100 tons. Together, these top three receiving ports collected 68% of all U.S. merchant imports.

At Gerdau we closely follow trade in long products steel since it has a profound impact on domestic market share and material pricing. We want you, our valued customers to have access to current information that can help you better plan and operate your businesses.