IRON AND STEEL1/ (Data in million metric tons of metal, unless noted) Domestic Production and Use: The iron and steel industry and ferrous foundries produced goods valued at about $70 billion. The steel industry consisted of 79 companies that produced raw steel at 116 locations, with combined raw steel production capability of 102 million tons. Indiana accounted for about 22% of total raw steel production, followed by Ohio, 16%, and Pennsylvania, 9%. Pig iron was produced by 15 companies operating integrated steel mills, with approximately 58 blast furnaces, of which about 41 were in continuous operation. Integrated companies accounted for about 64% of total steel production, including output of their electric arc furnaces. The distribution of steel shipments was estimated as follows: warehouses and steel service centers, 25%; transportation (predominantly for automotive production), 16%; construction, 15%; cans and containers, 5%; and other, 39%. Ferrous foundries, numbering about 1,000, were importers of pig iron into the United States, mainly from Brazil and Russia. Salient Statistics--United States:1/ 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995e/ Pig iron production2/ 44.1 47.4 48.2 49.4 51.0 Steel production: 79.7 84.3 88.8 91.2 95.0 Basic oxygen furnaces, percent 60.0 62.0 60.6 60.7 61.0 Electric arc furnaces, percent 38.4 38.0 39.4 39.3 39.0 Open hearth furnaces, percent 1.6 -- -- -- -- Continuously cast steel, percent 75.8 79.3 85.7 89.5 91.0 Shipments: Steel mill products 71.5 74.6 80.8 86.3 89.0 Steel castings3/ 0.9 0.9 1.4 1.7 1.8 Iron castings3/ 6.9 7.4 11.9 13.5 14.0 Imports of steel mill products 14.4 15.5 17.7 27.3 28.0 Exports of steel mill products 5.8 3.9 3.6 3.5 4.5 Apparent steel consumption4/ 80.8 86.2 92.0 104.0 108.0 Producer price index for steel mill products (1982=100)5/ 109.5 106.4 108.2 113.4 121.0 Steel mill product stocks at service centers, yearend6/ 5.4 5.3 5.7 6.6 7.1 Total employment, average7/ Blast furnaces and steel mills 199,000 187,000 175,000 172,000 171,000 Iron and steel foundries 126,000 120,000 119,000 125,000 130,000 Net import reliance8/ as a percent of apparent consumption 12 13 15 22 21 Recycling: See Iron and Steel Scrap and Iron and Steel Slag. Import Sources (1991-94): European Union (EU),9/ 33%; Canada, 20%; Japan, 13%; Brazil, 8%; South Korea, 7%; and other, 19%. Most favored Tariff:10/ Item Number nation (MFN)11/ Canada Mexico Non-MFN12/ 12/31/95 12/31/95 12/31/95 12/31/95 Pig iron 7201.10.0000 Free Free Free $1.11/t. Carbon steel: Semifinished 7207.12.0050 3.8% 1.2% 3.3% 20%. Structural shapes 7216.33.0090 0.8% 0.2% 0.7% 2%. Bars, hot-rolled 7213.20.0000 1.7% 0.5% 1.5% 5.5%. Line pipe 7305.11.1060 1.7% 0.5% 1.5% 5.5%. Tinplate 7210.12.0000 3.2% 1% 2.8% 6%. Sheets, hot-rolled 7208.24.5030 4.4% 1.4% 3.9% 20%. Hot-rolled, pickled 7208.24.1000 4.6% 1.5% 4% 0.4›/kg+20%. Cold-rolled 7209.22.0000 4.6% 1.5% 4% 0.4›/kg+20%. Galvanized 7210.49.0090 5.8% 1.9% 5.2% 21.5%. Stainless steel: Semifinished 7218.90.0015 4.7% 1.5% 4.1% 29%. Bars, cold- finished 7222.20.0075 9.5% 3.1% 8.4% 29%. Pipe and tube 7304.41.0045 13/ 6.8% 13/ 2.2% Free 36%. Cold-rolled sheets 7219.33.0035 9.1% 3% 8% 29%. Prepared by Iron and Steel Specialist (703) 648-4972. IRON AND STEEL Depletion Allowance: Not applicable. Government Stockpile: None. Events, Trends, and Issues: Steel production and shipments by U.S. companies continued at near effective capacity during 1995. With demand strong, steel prices continued the climb that began in 1993. As a result, the industry continued to be generally profitable. Strong market conditions, combined with the success of new thin slab continuous casting technology, have led to a spate of new steel plant construction. Over 10 million tons of new steel plant capacity, almost all of it for flat-rolled products, was started up or under construction in the United States in 1995. Imports of steel mill products continued at near-record levels. Steel companies themselves were responsible for importing an estimated 4 million tons of semifinished steel for finishing in the United States. This was in addition to about 2 million tons of semifinished steel imported by companies that do not have steelmaking capability. Exports were primarily regular shipments to Canadian and Mexican customers. At midyear, domestic demand softened slightly. In response, domestic companies increased their export sales. In particular, exports of hot-rolled steel to the Far East reversed the usual trend of imports from that region. World Production: Pig iron Raw steel 1994 1995e/ 1994 1995e/ United States 49.4 51.0 91.2 95.0 Brazil 25.2 25.0 25.7 25.0 China 96.4 100.0 91.5 90.0 European Union (EU)9/ 97.7 100.0 151.8 160.0 Japan 73.8 76.0 98.3 105.0 Korea, South 21.2 22.0 33.7 36.0 Russia 36.1 39.0 48.8 50.0 Ukraine 20.0 18.0 23.8 22.0 Other countries 92.2 99.0 161.1 177.0 World total (may be rounded) 512.0 530.0 726.0 760.0 World Resources: Not applicable. See Iron Ore. Substitutes: Iron is the least expensive and most widely used metal. In most applications, iron and steel compete either with less expensive nonmetallic materials or with more expensive materials having a property advantage. Iron and steel compete with lighter materials, such as aluminum and plastics, in the motor vehicle industry; aluminum, concrete, and wood in construction; and aluminum, glass, paper, and plastics in containers. e/Estimated. 1/Production and shipments data source is the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI); see also Iron Ore and Iron and Steel Scrap. 2/More than 95% of iron made is transported molten to steelmaking furnaces located at the same site. 3/U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. Data for years prior to 1993 may not be comparable due to changes in survey panel. 4/Defined as steel shipments + imports - exports + adjustments for industry stock changes + adjustment for imports of semifinished steel products. 5/Bureau of Labor Statistics. 6/Steel Service Center Institute. 7/Bureau of Labor Statistics. Blast furnaces and steel mills: SIC 3312; Iron and steel foundries: SIC 3320. 8/Defined as imports - exports + adjustments for Government and industry stock changes. 9/Data are for the expanded European Union, which, as of Jan. 1, 1995, was joined by Austria, Finland, and Sweden. 10/All tariff percentages are ad valorem. 11/No tariff for Israel and certain Caribbean and Andean nations. 12/See Appendix B. 13/No tariff for use in civil aircraft. Mineral Commodity Summaries, January 1996