Exclusive US increased its imports of rolled steel by 10.4% m/m in May

Total steel imports for the month rose by 19.5% month-on-month

According to data from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), US steel companies increased their imports of rolled steel by 10.4% in May 2025 compared to the previous month, to 1.78 million tons.

Total steel imports (rolled and semi-finished products) for the month increased by 19.5% month-on-month to 2.48 million tons.

The largest volume of imports was for products for the oil industry – 212.39 thousand tons (+6.1% m/m), hot-rolled flat products – 143.79 thousand tons (+51% m/m), line pipes – 143.46 thousand tons (+48.2% m/m), and tinplate – 141.66 thousand tons (-5.2% m/m). The volume of finished products in total imports for the month amounted to 71.6%.

In January-May, the United States reduced imports of rolled steel by 8.4% compared to the same period in 2024, to 9.14 million tons. Total steel imports amounted to 12.37 million tons (-6.2% y/y). The main volumes of supplies were products for the oil industry – 948.03 thousand tons (+14.9% y/y), hot-dip galvanized steel – 831.21 thousand tons (-36% y/y), and cold-rolled flat products – 752.2 thousand tons (-12.2% y/y).

The main sources of steel imports to the US in January-May 2025 are Canada, Brazil, and Mexico – 2.46 million tons (-15.7% y/y), 2.16 million tons (-2% y/y), and 1.59 million tons (-8.5% y/y), respectively.

As GMK Center reported earlier, at the end of 2024, the US increased its imports of rolled steel by 3.7% compared to 2023, to 22.5 million tons. Total steel imports (rolled products and semi-finished products) for the year increased by 2.5% y/y – to 28.86 million tons. The main sources of steel imports to the US in 2024 are Canada, Brazil, and Mexico – 6.56 million tons, 4.49 million tons, and 3.52 million tons, respectively.

Steel production in the US in 2024 fell by 2.4% compared to 2023, to 79.5 million tons. In total, global steel production for the year amounted to 1.84 billion tons, which is 0.9% less than in the previous year. Thus, the US is among the ten largest steel-producing countries in the world according to World Steel.