This Morning in Metals: Steel imports rise; U.S.-China trade talks continue

gui yong nian Adobe Stock steel 061317
gui yong nian/Adobe Stock

This morning in metals news, the U.S. Census Bureau reported October steel imports increased from the previous month, U.S.-China trade talks continue and industrial production declined in October.
Keep up to date on everything going on in the world of trade and tariffs via MetalMiner’s Trade Resource Center.

Steel imports rise

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. imports of steel totaled 2.0 million metric tons in October, up from 1.7 million metric tons imported in September.
The value of October imports reached $1.8 billion, up from $1.6 billion the previous month.

U.S.-China talks continue

According to media reports, the Chinese government has indicated it is willing to negotiate in terms of intellectual property theft, which has been a primary gripe of the U.S.
Yahoo Finance reported the Chinese government released a statement saying it will work to curb intellectual property violations.
Among Chinese trade practices about which the U.S. has called foul has been forced technology transfer and intellectual property theft. The two sides are working toward an initial trade deal, from which it is hoped the economic superpowers can build momentum toward a wider trade deal.

Industrial production slips in October

According to the Federal Reserve earlier this month, industrial production fell 0.8% in October following a 0.3% decline in September.
In addition, manufacturing production fell 0.6% in October.
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“Much of this decline was due to a drop of 7.1 percent in the output of motor vehicles and parts that resulted from a strike at a major manufacturer of motor vehicles,” the Fed said. “The decreases for total industrial production, manufacturing, and motor vehicles and parts were their largest since May 2018, April 2019, and January 2019, respectively.”

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