US ferrous scrap exports up 12% in H1CY'21

The United States, the world's largest ferrous scrap supplier, witnessed a significant 12% y-o-y rise in exports of the material to 9.26 million tonnes (mn t) in Jan-Jun'21 as against 8.24 mn t in Jan-Jun'20, as per customs data maintained by SteelMint.

Mexico was the topmost importer with 1.64 mn t in Jan-Jun'21 followed by Turkey and Malaysia with 1.6 mn t and 1 mn t respectively.

Highlights

• Mexico largest scrap importer: Mexico outpaced Turkey to become the largest buyer of US scrap in H1CY'21 and accounted for 1.64 mn t of scrap imports from the US in H1CY'21, followed by Turkey at 1.59 mn t.
  
  

• Limited Japanese offers drive Bangla mills to the US: Bangladesh mills remained attracted to US scrap on limited offers from Japan. The mills imported scrap from the US before lockdown restrictions were imposed to complete their construction projects and fulfill their restocking needs ahead of the Ramadan holidays. Also, with Japanese bulk scrap facing freight challenges, mills remained active in booking cargo from the US. Scrap exports from the US to Bangladesh rose from 0.6 mn t in H1CY'20 to 0.62 mn t in H1CY'21.
  
  
• Scrap shipments to Vietnam shoot up: Robust steel demand in Vietnam supported scrap imports into the country. Steel production across categories reached 15.9 mn t in H1CY'21, up 37% over the same period in 2020. US scrap exports to Vietnam rose from 0.31 mn t in H1CY'20 to 0.86 mn t in H1CY'21.
  
  

Outlook
US ferrous scrap exports may see an uptrend riding a probable increase in Turkish and Bangladeshi ferrous scrap imports.