MSCI Reports Increased Shipments of Steel, Aluminum > Metal Center News

MSCI Reports Increased Shipments of Steel, Aluminum

May 30, 2012

Service center shipments of steel and aluminum were up in April compared to the same month in 2011, according to the latest Metals Activity Report from the Metals Service Center Institute, Rolling Meadows, Ill. The increases reversed the year-over-year declines experienced in March.

U.S. service centers shipped 3.5 million tons of steel products in April, an increase of 6.3 percent vs. April 2011. Year-to-date steel shipments totaled 14.7 million tons, an increase of 6.9 percent from last year.

Steel product inventories totaled 9.1 million tons at the end of April, an increase of 11.9 percent from a year ago and an increase of 3.1 percent from March. At April shipping rates, this represented 2.6 months supply in inventory, an increase of 5.3 percent from 2011.

Service centers shipped 129,000 tons of aluminum products in April, an increase of 2.5 percent from the same month last year. For the year to date, aluminum shipments totaled 528,100 tons, an increase of 5.2 percent from April 2011. Inventories of aluminum products totaled 376,900 tons at the end of the month, an increase of 4.1 percent compared to the same month last year and 0.8 percent more than March. At April shipping rates, this represented 2.9 months supply in inventory, an increase of 1.5 percent from 2011.

Canadian service centers shipped 521,200 tons of steel products in April, an increase of 1.3 percent compared to last year. Year-to-date steel shipments were 2.2 million tons, up 1.1 percent from the same period in 2011. Steel product inventories totaled 1.7 million tons at the end of April, an increase of 11.2 percent from the previous year but down 0.9 percent from March. At April shipping rates, this represented 3.3 months supply in inventory, an increase of 9.8 percent from a year ago.

Canadian distributors shipped 13,400 tons of aluminum products in April, an increase of 11.4 percent from the same month in 2011. For the year to date, aluminum shipments totaled 55,200 tons, an increase of 13.5 percent from April 2011.

Inventories of aluminum products totaled 35,300 tons at the end of the month, an increase of 17.2 percent from 2011 but down 0.1 percent from March. At April shipping rates, this represented 2.6 months supply in inventory, an increase of 5.2 percent from a year ago.