DoC: US steel imports from China nearly double YoY in January

The United States imported 54,857 tonnes of steel products from China for domestic use in January, surging 94.8% year-on-year from 30,918 tonnes in January 2024, according to a report released by the U.S. Census Bureau under the Department of Commerce (DoC) on March 6.

The increase was part of a broader global trend, as commodity markets have been gripped by concerns over then-President-elect Donald Trump's potential imposition of higher tariffs on key commodities, Mysteel Global observed.

According to the report, total U.S. steel imports also rose sharply in January, reaching 2.79 million tonnes, up 20.5% year-on-year and 43.9% higher than December 2024.

"Steel and aluminum will certainly be key areas of Trump's trade protection, based on the protective tariffs he imposed on imports of both during his first term," a Chinese steel trader told Mysteel Global.

Just a month and a half into Trump's presidency, the White House has already raised tariffs three times - either specifically targeting Chinese products or broadly on global steel imports. By September 27 2024, Chinese steel exports to the U.S. had faced at least 50% tariffs (excluding anti-dumping and countervailing duties), and this rate was set to increase to 70% starting March 4.

In a recent meeting with Mysteel Global, an executive with a multinational mining giant remarked that "The rush-to-export sentiment will persist in U.S.-bound trade over the coming months, as concerns over Trump's potential tariff hikes continue."

While U.S. President Donald Trump granted temporary tariff exemptions for Canadian and Mexican goods covered under the USMCA until April 2, China was excluded from these exemptions, highlighting the ongoing trade tensions between the two countries, Mysteel Global learned.

Chinese stainless steel exporters have also been affected by market uncertainty, leading to increased shipments to the U.S. in January. According to DoC data, China exported 5,522 tonnes of stainless steel products to the U.S. in January, marking a 58.7% YoY increase and a nearly 30% rise from December.

However, as the mining executive pointed out, "China's direct stainless steel exports to the U.S. remain relatively small. Instead, we should focus more on how other countries may initiate trade investigations against Chinese stainless steel products amid rising global protectionism, such as Vietnam and South Korea (two of China's largest stainless steel export destinations)."

Written by Adele Pan, panqinjie@mysteel.com

Edited by Russ McCulloch, russ.mcculloch@mysteel.com