The American Iron and Steel Institute, based on Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis data from the Department of Commerce, released figures for steel import permit applications for December.
Accordingly, total steel import permits in December amounted to 1,670,000 net tons. This figure indicated a 0.8% decrease compared with the 1,684,000 net tons reported for November, while representing a 1.9% increase compared with November’s final import total of 1,639,000 net tons.
Finished steel import permit tonnage reached 1,206,000 net tons in December, marking an 11.2% increase compared with November’s final finished steel imports of 1,085,000 net tons. During the same period, the market share of processed steel imports was estimated at 15%. For the full year 2025, this ratio stood at 18%.
Taking the full year into account, including December SIMA permits, total steel imports reached 25,334,000 net tons, while processed steel imports totaled 18,711,000 net tons. These figures pointed to decreases of 12.2% and 16.8%, respectively, compared with the same period of 2024.
On a product basis, the largest increase in December permits compared with November’s final imports was recorded in rebar. Rebar imports increased by 229%, followed by wire rod with a 59% increase, sheet and strip in coils with a 38% increase, heavy structural shapes with a 36% increase, and hot rolled bars with a 29% increase. For the full year 2025, the most notable increases compared with 2024 were recorded in stainless steel pipe and tube at 34%, tin plate at 24%, line pipe at 17%, wire rod at 14%, and oil country tubular goods at 14%.
By country, the highest import permit applications in December were filed for Brazil, Canada, South Korea, Mexico, and Japan. Applications from Brazil totaled 227,000 net tons, reflecting an 8% decrease compared with November, while Canada recorded a 13% decrease to 223,000 net tons. South Korea posted a 25% increase to 205,000 net tons, Mexico recorded a 14% increase to 188,000 net tons, and Japan registered an 11% increase to 80,000 net tons.
For the full year 2025, the largest steel suppliers to the Us were Canada, Brazil, and Mexico. Imports from Canada decreased by 31% to 4,513,000 net tons, while imports from Brazil decreased by 9% to 4,095,000 net tons and imports from Mexico decreased by 18% to 2,874,000 net tons.
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