🇺🇸 United States exports of iron and steel scrap: 2024 trade data
Exports of iron and steel scrap by the United States reached $6.33 billion in 2024 (14.55 million tonnes). It ranks 1st of 206 countries for exports of this product. That is 10% less than in 2023. Across 2017-2024 the long-run trend was broadly stable. The peak in this period was 2022, at $8.04 billion.
Public statistics, latest reported year 2024. Values in US dollars.
Exports of iron and steel scrap by year, 2017-2024
Hover or tap a year for detail.
Year by year
| Year | Value | Quantity |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $6.33B | 14.55M t |
| 2023 | $7.01B | 16.37M t |
| 2022 | $8.04B | 17.26M t |
| 2021 | $7.97B | 17.71M t |
| 2020 | $4.92B | 17.66M t |
| 2019 | $5.55B | 20.40M t |
| 2018 | $6.06B | 17.64M t |
| 2017 | $4.98B | 15.04M t |
Where the United States exports iron and steel scrap to
The largest buyer markets were Turkey (29%), Mexico (13%), India (12%). Among the main buyer markets, Pakistan grew fastest (+98% on the year before).
| Destination | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 🇹🇷 Turkey | $1.85B | 29% |
| 🇲🇽 Mexico | $801.2M | 13% |
| 🇮🇳 India | $766.1M | 12% |
| 🇧🇩 Bangladesh | $656.2M | 10% |
| Taiwan | $506.9M | 8% |
| 🇵🇪 Peru | $266.7M | 4.2% |
| 🇵🇰 Pakistan | $255.2M | 4% |
| 🇹🇭 Thailand | $235.1M | 3.7% |
| 🇨🇦 Canada | $214.1M | 3.4% |
| 🇻🇳 Vietnam | $177.2M | 2.8% |
Types of iron and steel scrap under HS 7204
| 7204.49 | Ferrous waste and scrap: n.e.c. in heading no. 7204 | 82% |
| 7204.21 | Ferrous waste and scrap: of stainless steel | 9.2% |
| 7204.29 | Ferrous waste and scrap: of alloy steel (excluding stainless) | 4.4% |
| 7204.41 | Ferrous waste and scrap: turnings, shavings, chips, milling waste, sawdust, fillings, trimmings and stampings, whether or not in bundles | 2.2% |
| 7204.10 | Ferrous waste and scrap: of cast iron | 1.7% |
| 7204.30 | Ferrous waste and scrap: of tinned iron or steel | 0.5% |
| 7204.50 | Ferrous products: remelting scrap ingots | 0% |
Codes and full descriptions: HS heading 7204.
Average export price of iron and steel scrap
The average declared value was about $0.43 per kg, close to the world average of $0.44.
Declared value divided by weight, all 2024 shipments. Prices per shipment and per company are in EximDataX.
The United States also imports iron and steel scrap
Imports of iron and steel scrap by the United States reached $1.94 billion in 2024 (4.72 million tonnes). That makes it the 6th largest importer of this product worldwide, out of 171 countries. Canada alone supplied 66% of it.
| Supplier country | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 🇨🇦 Canada | $1.28B | 66% |
| 🇲🇽 Mexico | $458.8M | 24% |
| 🇳🇱 Netherlands | $52.5M | 2.7% |
| 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | $45.5M | 2.4% |
| 🇸🇪 Sweden | $44.0M | 2.3% |
| 🇵🇱 Poland | $27.6M | 1.4% |
| 🇨🇳 China | $5.1M | 0.3% |
| 🇯🇵 Japan | $4.1M | 0.2% |
| 🇭🇳 Honduras | $4.0M | 0.2% |
| 🇧🇷 Brazil | $2.5M | 0.1% |
Who is behind these numbers in the United States?
Public statistics stop at country totals and the last published year. EximDataX shows the shipment records underneath: the companies, dates, quantities and declared values, updated weekly.
Shipment records are in the platform
Tell us what you trade and we will show you the latest records on a live call.
Direct customs feed: shipment-level records from the official customs source.
Updated weekly on EximDataX (some markets daily), while public statistics stop at 2024.
Source: CEPII BACI (reconciled UN Comtrade data), HS 2017 edition, release 202601, Etalab Open Licence 2.0. Annual values in US dollars at the customs border; quantities in tonnes where reported. HS 7204: Ferrous waste and scrap; remelting scrap ingots of iron or steel.
Iron and steel scrap trade in the United States: questions
What is the value of iron and steel scrap imported by the United States?
The United States imported iron and steel scrap worth $1.94 billion in 2024 (4.72 million tonnes).
Where does the United States import iron and steel scrap from?
The main supplier countries in 2024 were Canada (66%), Mexico (24%), Netherlands (3%).
What is the average import price of iron and steel scrap in the United States?
The average declared import value was about $0.41 per kg in 2024, against a world average of $0.44 per kg.
Does the United States export iron and steel scrap?
Yes. The United States exported iron and steel scrap worth $6.33 billion in 2024, mainly to Turkey, Mexico, India.
What is the HS code for iron and steel scrap?
Iron and steel scrap falls under HS heading 7204 (Ferrous waste and scrap; remelting scrap ingots of iron or steel). The six-digit codes under it split the product by type.
How can I find the companies trading iron and steel scrap with the United States?
These public statistics stop at country level. EximDataX has a direct customs feed for the United States with shipment-level records, updated weekly, where you can see the importers and exporters by name.
Iron and steel scrap trade in other countries
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