The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) reports that steel import permit applications into the US for the month of October total 4,382,000 net tons (nt). This was an 8% increase from the 4,043,000 permit tons recorded in September and a 12% increase from the September final imports total of 3,900,000nt, Kallanish notes.

Import permit tonnage for finished steel in October was 3,376,000, up 14% from the final imports total of 2,955,000 in September. For the first 10 months of 2014 (including October permits and September final), total and finished steel imports were 36,947,000nt and 27,792,000nt, respectively, up 37% and 32% from the same period in 2013. The estimated finished steel import market share in October was 31% and is 28% year-to-date, AISI confirms.

Finished steel imports with large increases in October permits vs. the September final included standard rails (up 234%), heavy structural shapes (up 52%) and plates in coils (up 37%). Products with significant y-t-d increases compared to the same period in 2013 include plates in coils (up 86%), wire rods (up 86%), cold rolled sheets (up 85%) and cut lengths plates (up 71%).

In October, the largest finished steel import permit applications for offshore countries were for South Korea (532,000nt, up 38% from September final), China (369,000nt up 12%), Turkey (299,000nt, up 72%) and Japan (254,000, up 45%). Through the first ten months of 2014, the largest offshore suppliers were South Korea (4,545,000nt, up 43% from the same period in 2013), China (2,711,000nt, up 70%) and Japan (1,785,000nt, up 11%).

Monthly permit numbers provided to date may be understated, AISI says, as entry documentation with the required import license number may be submitted up to ten days after imports have entered U.S. commerce.