According to the latest report from the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), U.S. steel mills shipped 7.92 million net tons for the month of September, a 6.8% decrease from the 8.49 million net tons shipped in September 2007 and a 10.7% decrease from the 8.86 million net tons shipped in August 2008. Steel shipments to the automotive market are down 4.4% according to a year-to-year comparison of year-to-date shipments. The report is based on the latest U.S. Census Bureau data.
According to figures released by the World Steel Association, world crude steel production for the 67 reporting countries stood at an estimated 100.5 million tons in October 2008, a 12.4% decline for the same month of 2007 and 6.9% lower than the previous month.