Imports of aluminium products in North America up 23.2% YoY in 2017

According to the latest report from Aluminum Association, imports of aluminium ingot, scrap and mill products into the U.S. and Canada (excluding cross-border trade) stood at 386,000 tonnes in December 2017, up 21.4% over the December 2016 total of 319,000 tonnes.

Including scrap, which accounted for roughly 58.7% of reported aluminium exports in December, exports totalled 262,000 tonnes, up 22.4% over a year ago. Excluding scrap, exports totalled 108,000 tonnes, up 2.6% over last year. Exports of scrap increased 41.7% YoY. In total for 2017, imports were up 23.2%to 4.4 million tonnes YoY, while exports were up 6.6% to 2.9 million tonnes.

The Association’s “Index of Net New Orders of Aluminum Mill Products” for January 2018 increased 21.2% over December 2017. Orders for flat roll products (sheet, plate, can stock and foil) were up 16.7% month on month, while orders for extruded products advanced 43.5% and orders for redraw rod increased 11.7%. Compared to January 2017, total orders were up 6.9%. As reported last month, orders recorded by domestic producers for the full year 2017 were up 1.1% over 2016.