Steel Mills

Canadian Distributor Sheet Inventories & Shipments in May

Written by Brett Linton

June 16, 2016

Canadian shipments for all steel products in the month of May were 388,600 net tons, an increase of 4.2 percent from the month before but a decrease of 2.1 percent from May 2015. Inventories at the end of the month stood at 1,150,300 tons, down 9.4 percent from last month and down 26.1 percent from the same month one year ago.

The daily average receipt rate for May was 12,790 tons per day (21 day month), down from 21,662 tons per day in April (21 day month also). Total May receipts were 186,300 tons lower than the April figure. According to the MSCI, total steel product inventories stood at 3.0 months at the end of May, down from 3.4 months at the end of April.

Flat Rolled

Canadian shipments of flat rolled products for the month of May were 232,100 tons, an increase of 3.0 percent from April but a decrease of 2.2 percent from the same month one year ago. Inventories at the end of the month were 675,500 tons, down 3.8 percent from last month and down 32.1 percent from the same month one year ago. The daily receipt rate for May was 9,786 tons per day, down from 9,957 tons per day in April. Total tonnage received was 205,500 tons, down from 209,100 tons the month before. Flat rolled inventories stood at 2.9 months in May, down from 3.1 months the month before.

Plate

Canadian shipments for plate products in the month of May were 72,000 tons, an increase of 12.7 percent from the previous month and an increase of 3.8 percent from May 2015. Inventories at the end of the month were 197,700 tons, down 0.5 percent from last month and down 26.9 percent from the same month one year ago. The daily average receipt rate for May was 3,386 tons per day, up from 3,262 tons per day the month before. Plate inventories ended the month at 2.7 months, down from 3.1 months the month prior.

Pipe and Tube

Canadian shipments for pipe and tube products in the month of May were 41,800 tons, an increase of 5.3 percent from the month before but a decrease of 12.4 percent from the same month last year. Inventories at the end of the month were 128,000 tons, up 1.7 percent from last month but down 6.5 percent from the same month one year ago. The daily average receipt rate for May was 2,095 tons per day, up from 1,419 tons per day the month before. Total months on hand for pipe and tube inventories stood at 3.1 months, down from 3.2 months at the end of April.

Brett Linton

Brett Linton is a senior analyst for Steel Market Update, where he began his career. Linton has been in the steel industry since 2010. He has held roles as a category manager and strategic insights director at Reibus before returning to SMU in 2024. He is a graduate of The University of North Georgia with a degree in Finance and Accounting. Brett can be reached at brett@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-314-0179.

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