U.S. Steel Merchant Final Imports: Merchant final imports to the U.S. came in at 23,541 tons in August 2020, declining for the second straight month.

Figure 1 further breaks down total merchant final imports from January 2019 – August 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 August. Mexico and Canada combined account for 88% of the total this month. Mexico was the largest exporter with 11,625 tons; Canadian imports came in at 9,191 tons for August.

Figure 3 charts the largest imports by district of entry into the U.S. in rank order through August. Laredo, TX was the largest receiver of merchants this month, receiving 8,295 tons of the total 23,541 (35%). The Detroit, MI port was the second-largest receiver coming in at 7,411 tons and Buffalo, NY was the third-largest receiver coming in at 1,871 tons. Together, these top three receiving ports collected 75% 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.