Steel Mills

MSCI: U.S. Service Center Shipments Up 3.8% in 2017

January 18, 2018

U.S. service centers shipped 38.779 million tons of steel products in 2017, an increase of 3.8 percent compared with full-year 2016, according to the Metals Service Center Institute’s December Metals Activity Report. Shipments of carbon flat roll and plate saw single-digit increases over the prior year, while shipments of pipe and tube products saw a small decline.

December 2017 steel shipments by U.S. service centers totaled 2.657 million tons, an increase of 2.8 percent compared with the prior December, but down 15.9 percent from the prior month.

U.S. service center inventories at the end of December totaled 7.713 million tons or 2.9 months on hand. That’s a 6.8 percent increase from the 7.224 million tons and 2.8 months on hand the prior year. Tons shipped per day in December totaled 132,800, up from 123,100 in December 2016.

Carbon Flat Rolled

Looking at shipments by product category, U.S. service centers shipped 26.076 million tons of flat roll in full-year 2017, a 2.9 percent increase over 2016.

December shipments of carbon flat roll totaled 1.756 million tons, up 3.6 percent from December 2016. Flat roll shipments declined by 17.3 percent compared with the prior month.

Tons shipped per day in December averaged 87,800, with 20 shipping days in the month, up from 80,700 in December last year, with 21 shipping days.

Service centers’ flat rolled inventory on hand at the end of December totaled 4.990 million tons, or 2.8 months on hand, up 8.6 percent from last December.

Carbon Plate

Year to date through December, U.S. service centers shipped 3.459 million tons of carbon plate, a 6.1 percent increase over the 3.259 million tons last year.

Service center shipments of carbon plate products in December totaled 247,200 tons, up 1.5 percent from December 2016. Tons shipped per day in December, with 20 shipping days, averaged 12,400 tons, up from 11,600 tons in 21 shipping days last December.

Plate inventory on hand at the end of December totaled 771,600 tons, or 3.1 months of supply, 6.8 percent more than the 722,500 tons or 3.0 months of supply at the end of December 2016.

Pipe and Tube

Year to date through December, U.S. service centers shipped 2.203 million tons of pipe and tube products, a 4.2 percent decrease from the 2.300 million tons the prior year.

Service center shipments of pipe and tube products in December totaled 150,000 tons, down 7.8 percent from December 2016. Tons shipped per day in December averaged 7,500, down from 7,700 last December.

Pipe and tube inventory on hand at the end of December totaled 456,000 tons or 3.0 months of supply. That’s 1.0 percent less than the 460,700 tons or 2.8 months of supply at the end of December 2016.