Scrap Steel Imports Tumbled to Zero, For the First Time in This Century

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The imports of steel scrap by China has dropped to zero in the month of August this year, says official trade statistics published by the Chinese Customs authorities. This is the first time in this century that steel scrap imports have fallen to nil. The decline is attributed to the tight curbs on imports of various solid waste categories.

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Another Asian country, South Korea, too reported sharp decline in scrap imports during the month. The country’s imports, at nearly 400,000 tons during the month, were down by almost 29% from the previous year. The imports hit the lowest level in almost 4 years. However, the year-to-date imports stood higher by 5.7% at around 4.58 million tons, compared with the previous year.

Japan reported 46% year-on-year decline in scrap imports from January to August this year. The data published by the Japanese Ministry of Finance (MoF) suggests that the imports totalled approximately 86,000 tons in Jan-Aug ’19. Also, the monthly imports of scrap were down by almost 21% year-on-year.