Asia, LatAm drive US Fe scrap exports in Feb

US ferrous scrap exports rose in February from a year earlier as elevated exports to Asia and Latin America offset a downturn in shipments to Turkey.

US exports rose by 24pc to 1.32mn metric tons (t) in the month from February a year prior, according to US Department of Commerce data. Year-to-date exports rose by 45pc to 2.8mn t.

Bulk and container volumes

US exports of bulk ferrous scrap grew by 13pc to 753,000t in February because of increased shipments to Asia and Latin America.

Bulk exports to Turkey dropped by around 25pc to nearly 221,000t, hitting a 10-month low. Bulk volumes to South Korea also declined, falling by 63pc to 77,000t.

But shipments were up to countries that did not receive bulk vessels in February 2019, helping to lift US bulk exports from a year ago. These included 62,000t to Peru, 38,000t to Brazil, and 57,000t to Thailand, plus additional tons to Mexico and Bangladesh. Mexican shipments rose to 63,000t from 14,000t, while Bangladesh-bound cargoes grew to nearly 121,000t from 32,000t.

Containerized scrap volumes also increased in February [in spite of a worldwide difficulty in container availability caused by the spread of Covid-19](direct.argusmedia.com/NewsAndAnalysis/Article/2075572).

US containerized exports increased by 46pc to 418,000t, mainly driven by more tons shipped to Malaysia and steady demand from Taiwan, the largest consumer of US containerized scrap.

Malaysian containerized imports from the US more than tripled to 135,000t, while Taiwanese containers ticked up by around 5pc to almost 110,000t.

East coast exports grew by 26p to 526,000t in the month thanks to the bulk shipments to Peru, Brazil, and Mexico. Year-to-date volumes rose by 46pc to 1.09mn t.

Turkish-bound vessels exported 199,000t from the east coast, a 33pc decrease from a year earlier.

Exports to India increased by 22pc to 35,000t, while Greece-bound shipments rose by nearly 30pc to almost 31,000t. Exports to Pakistan grew by nearly 48pc to 30,000t.

Shipments from New York City led the month at 159,000t, down by 5pc from the prior year. Philadelphia shipped 95,000t, more than three times the amount exported in February 2019. Baltimore exports held flat at 76,000t.

West coast exports ticked up by 10pc to 543,000t. Year-to-date volumes increased by 39pc to 1.2mn t.

Volumes to Bangladesh rose to 91,000t from 34,000t, while Malaysian exports doubled to nearly 75,000t. Exports to India and Thailand also increased to almost 48,000t and 71,000t, respectively, up from less than 8,000t each in February 2019.

Taiwanese volumes off the west coast fell by 9pc to 101,000t, while Vietnam-bound tons slid by around 16pc to 54,000t. South Korean shipments also dropped, falling by 64pc to 72,000t.

Scrap volumes exported from Los Angeles topped the west coast in February, despite falling by 13pc to 206,000t from a year earlier. San Francisco followed with 172,600t, a 65pc increase on the year. Bulk exporters in the Seattle-Portland region increased export volumes by 17pc to 157,000t.

Gulf coast exports totaled 42,000t, up from around 13,000t a year earlier.

Year-to-date totals rose to nearly 116,000t from 28,000t. Most of the tonnage in the month stemmed from a 26,000t shipment to Peru from Tampa, Florida.

By Will Ehrhardt