American <link _top>Scrap Coalition is urging the Export Import Bank of the United States to stop assisting with exports of <link _top>steel scrap to Turkey, which is now the leading importer of <link _top>ferrous <link _top>scrap from the US followed by Egypt and Greece.
It was reported in the recent past that the newly formed American <link _top>Scrap Coalition said that foreign export restrictions on <link _top>ferrous <link _top>scrap constitute an issue of increasing urgency and called on the US government to make <link _top>ferrous <link _top>scrap trade issues part of international trade negotiations.
Mr Alan Price counsel of coalition has said that "the US should look to eliminate foreign <link _top>scrap export tariffs as part of its trade negotiations including both World Trade Organization matters and bilateral agreements. These barriers need to be dealt with more directly than they have been before."
He cited Russia's new proposal to increase <link _top>ferrous <link _top>scrap export tariffs to USD 120 per tonne to USD 130 per tonne. This is a dramatic step backwards for Russia, which had promised to reduce steel tariffs as part of their application for membership in the WTO."
Mr Price said that some countries, like Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan and Uruguay ban <link _top>ferrous <link _top>scrap exports, while others have onerous export tariffs, including Vietnam at 35% and Pakistan at 20%. He said that "Our <link _top>scrap users face higher prices and lower availability of <link _top>scrap supplies because of other countries' policies.”
Mr Tom Danjczek president of the <link _top>Steel Manufacturers Association, said the spike in US <link _top>ferrous <link _top>scrap exports has been driven in part by restrictions around the world. US <link _top>ferrous <link _top>scrap exports grew to 18.3 million tonne in 2007 from 6.3 million tonne in 2000 and are now on pace to exceed 22 million tonne in 2008.
The surge in <link _top>scrap prices, he said, has compressed margins for <link _top>steel makers. He offered an example: Just a few years ago, USD100/lt <link _top>scrap went into USD 500 per short tons <link _top>steel products, a cost component of 20%. Now, he explained, USD 600 per short ton <link _top>scrap goes into USD 1,000 per short ton <link _top>steel products, a cost component of 60%, triple that of just a few years ago. Mr Danjczek said that increased <link _top>steel costs driven by rising <link _top>scrap prices will impact US <link _top>steel consumers in the construction, automotive and appliance sectors, among others.
Mr Al Lucchetti president of The Cumberland <link _top>Foundry and immediate past president of the American <link _top>Foundry Society said that <link _top>scrap price increases had hit many <link _top>foundries particularly hard. He said that "With the increased <link _top>scrap surcharges, it's impossible to get any other increases to cover other rising input costs like <link _top>energy insurance and labor.”
