Minerals and Metals

U.S. trade in minerals and metals over the past five years continued to be concentrated among the same top-three sector trading partners: Canada, China, and Mexico (table MM.1). In 2014, these three countries together accounted for about two-fifths of both U.S. domestic exports (38 percent) and U.S. general imports (41 percent). Several factors contributed to the leading shifts in U.S. imports and exports of minerals and metals during 2013‒14, including the economic performance of major downstream consuming industries (table MM.2), particularly higher shipment values recorded by most individual durable-goods manufacturing industries;¹ continued expansion of construction activity;² continued energy exploration, development, and production;³ lack of sufficient domestic mine resources for many critical raw materials; and higher prices for most minerals and metals, with certain precious metals noted among the exceptions.⁴

U.S. Exports⁵

U.S. domestic exports of minerals and metals fell in 2014 from the previous year’s level, by $11.6 billion (9 percent) to $122.1 billion. Precious metals and non-numismatic coins accounted for the largest export decline of $11.9 billion decrease (31 percent) to $27.0 billion. Destination markets that recorded the largest declines were Switzerland (down by $5.7 billion) and Hong Kong (down by $4.1 billion); both are global centers for refining, fabricating, and trading all precious metals.

Gold accounted for most of this export decline, as shipments of unwrought gold, in the forms of unrefined doré and refined bullion and grains, decreased by $11.2 billion (36 percent) to $20.3 billion.⁶ The United States produced less gold in 2014 as two major mines in Nevada extracted lower-grade ores and refineries processed less doré and recovered scrap.⁷ Lower monthly average gold prices in 2014 further dampened the value of exports.⁸ Gold prices were down by 10 percent from the previous year’s monthly average.⁹ This trend was attributable to lower global demand, as lower precious-jewelry and investment-item (bar and coin) purchases overshadowed higher central bank purchases. This lower demand was coupled with relatively unchanged global supply: higher mine production counterbalanced lower scrap recovery.¹⁰

U.S. exports of ferrous (iron and steel) waste and scrap were also reduced from the previous year. As the world’s largest economy, with a well-established, nationwide metallic scrap recovery infrastructure, the United States is the world’s largest generator and exporter of this commodity. However, in 2014, U.S. exports dropped by $1.4 billion (19 percent) to $6.2 billion, a reflection of lesser quantities exported and a greater proportion of less costly scrap types in the export mix.

Several domestic and foreign market factors dampened U.S. ferrous scrap exports. The unusually early and harsh winter weather in the eastern United States delayed delivery of scrap-hauling railway rolling stock; moreover, railway locomotives were diverted to haul crude-petroleum trains from oil shale fields because of a lack of pipeline capacity. Other factors included devaluation of foreign currencies against the U.S. dollar, and less robust demand for U.S. product in key ferrous scrap-consuming countries.¹¹

The leading trade partners accounting for the declines were Turkey (down $613 million), China (down $411 million), and South Korea (down $312 million), each having large-scale steel industries that depend upon foreign sources for ferrous scrap. Overall demand from these countries did not drop: China and South Korea produced more raw steel in 2014, though Turkey produced slightly less.¹² However, each shifted its foreign sourcing of steelmaking raw materials toward more non-U.S.-origin scrap and foreign-origin iron ore.¹³ The Chinese steel industry also benefited from increased domestically mined iron-ore output in 2014.¹⁴

In 2014, U.S. exports of natural and synthetic gemstones¹⁵ decreased by $189 million (8 percent) to $2.2 billion, led by lower exports of loose (not either set or mounted), non-industrial, worked (cut or faceted) diamonds.¹⁶ However, gemstones destined for re-export—predominantly worked (processed) diamonds—accounted for very high proportions of U.S. total exports of gemstones: their share increased from 78 percent in 2010 to 91 percent in 2014.¹⁷ Considered the world’s largest diamond-consuming market,¹⁸ but with only minimal domestic mine output,¹⁹ the United States is a significant international processing, trading, and transit center.²⁰

Established industry sales practices for diamond distribution generate re-exports. However, it is not always clear whether or not a given transaction will generate a re-export. Diamonds also can be sold or even resold while in air transit to or from the United States.²¹ Hence, importers of record may not know a priori whether the diamonds will be sold to a domestic buyer or to a foreign buyer and subsequently re-exported.

Decreased domestic exports of minerals and metals were partly offset by increased exports of miscellaneous products of base metal, up by $669 million (7 percent) to $9.9 billion,²² and of copper ores and concentrates, up by $665 million (26 percent) to $3.2 billion. No specific product accounted for leading shifts in the base metal industry group. Increased exports of miscellaneous base-metal products to Mexico and other U.S. production-sharing partners can be attributable to these items being component inputs to the growing shipments reported by most U.S. durable-goods industries.

Increased domestic mine output of copper ore was shipped to both domestic and foreign facilities for further processing into refined copper.²³ Mexico accounted for the largest increase in these exports (up by $630 million), since it has significant facilities for smelting, refining, and solvent extraction-electrowinning (that is, heap leaching and electrolytic recovery) of copper.²⁴ This trend reflects the extensive commercial ties within the North American primary (mined) copper industry.

U.S. Imports

Steel mill products recorded the largest increase in imports in the minerals and metals sector, up by $9.1 billion (31 percent) to $38.2 billion.²⁵ Russia (up by $1.5 billion), South Korea (up by $1.2 billion), and China (up by $1.1 billion) recorded the leading increases, as each has large-scale, export-oriented steel industries that expanded raw-steel output in 2014.²⁶

Three types of carbon (nonalloy) and alloy (other than stainless) steel mill products accounted for most of the increase. Imports of plates, sheets, and strips (flat-rolled steel products) were up by $4.3 billion (55 percent) to $12.3 billion, to meet growing U.S. downstream demand in certain durable-goods manufacturing (especially motor vehicles)²⁷ and construction²⁸ sectors. Imports of semifinished steel (ingots, blooms, billets, and slabs) were up by $1.8 billion (53 percent) to $5.2 billion. Domestic steel mills increasingly relied on imports of these intermediate goods to supplement their own raw-steel output (up by 1 percent),²⁹ allowing them to expand their shipments (up by 3 percent) of downstream steel mill products.³⁰ Imports of pipes and tubes (tubular products) went up by $1.2 billion (14 percent) to $10.2 billion in order to meet downstream U.S. demand, particularly in the growing construction³¹ and energy³² sectors.

U.S. imports of natural and synthetic gemstones increased by $1.5 billion (6 percent) to $26.4 billion. Sources recording the leading increases were Israel (up by $459 million), a long-established center for diamond processing and trading; India (up by $262 million), a more recently established center for diamond and colored gemstone processing and trading; and South Africa (up by $249 million), a long-established mined diamond producer and center for diamond processing and trading.³³ In addition, jewelry retailers generally reported robust holiday sales,³⁴ which relied on increased imports as well as domestic sources of precious jewelry.³⁵

The overall increase in U.S. imports of minerals and metals was partly countered by decreased imports of precious metals and non-numismatic coins, down by $3.4 billion (11 percent) to $26.8 billion. Major producers of mined gold and silver that recorded the largest declines were Peru (down $2.1 billion), Mexico (down $1.4 billion), and Canada (down $1.3 billion).³⁶ Unwrought gold, in the forms of unrefined doré and refined bullion and grains, recorded the largest import decline, down by $1.3 billion (9 percent) to $12.8 billion.³⁷ U.S. consumer demand for precious jewelry remained robust in 2014, but was overshadowed by a lessening of investor interest in acquiring more investment items, compared to the previous year’s high purchasing level.³⁸ Lower gold prices, reflecting weaker global demand but relatively unchanged global supply,³⁹ further dampened the value of imports.

U.S. imports of copper and related articles decreased by $1.0 billion (10 percent) to $9.1 billion.⁴⁰ Chile, the world’s largest mined copper producer,⁴¹ accounted for the largest decrease (down by $1.3 billion). Most of this decrease was in unrefined and refined copper, down by $1.2 billion (22 percent) to $4.2 billion.⁴² Robust domestic consumption and stockpiling by downstream consuming industries were increasingly satisfied by growing output from domestic mines and refineries.⁴³ The United States is also a major mined copper producer,⁴⁴ the world’s largest generator of copper scrap,⁴⁵ and a large inventory holder of refined copper.⁴⁶