Figures released by the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC) indicate the nation’s imports of scrap metal in October 2018 sank to a volume level not seen since 2014. Chinese buyers’ imports of red metal scrap from the United States, upon which a tariff has been placed, sank to less than 20 percent of the amount purchased in October 2017.

According to an online recap prepared by Reuters, the 330,000 metric tons of red metal scrap imported in October (the lowest monthly volume since 2014) was caused “by China’s tightening regulations on [scrap] imports.”

Chinese buyers in October brought in just 170,000 metric tons of copper-bearing scrap, with just 6,000 metric tons of that total coming from the United States. (The October 2017 U.S.-to-China figure was nearly 40,000 metric tons.)

That monthly U.S. import figure of 6,000 metric tons also is down more than 20 percent from the 26,500 metric tons shipped the prior month of September.

Smelters and scrap processors in China also imported less aluminum scrap in October, but down by about 10 percent from 100,000 metric tons in September to 90,000 in October.

In the absence of U.S. material, GACC records reportedly indicate Chinese buyers are turning more often to suppliers in Japan and Hong Kong.

In addition to trade impasse actions, the ability of China’s construction and manufacturing sectors to sustain their metal consumption activities also is coming into question.

In the steel sector, the cost of steel rebar and iron ore have both been on a downward trend in China. Should either China’s construction or manufacturing sectors experience a slowdown, it would have an impact on the amount of copper consumed and produced in China, and thus on the nation’s need for copper scrap.

Fuchs, a Terex brand with North American headquarters in Louisville, Kentucky,  has announced the appointment of Hoffman Equipment, headquartered in Piscataway, New Jersey, as the authorized Fuchs distributor for 11 counties in southern New York, the entire state of New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania for the full line of Fuchs material handlers.

Tim Watters, Hoffman Equipment president, says, “We are so excited to be named the Fuchs’ dealer for southern New York, New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania. Fuchs is the leading supplier of material handling equipment in the industry, and we are proud to be part of their team.”

He continues, “Hoffman’s success depends on our continued commitment to product support, and we look forward to grow Fuchs’ share of this dynamic market.” 

Hoffman will sell and service the Fuchs brand out of all of its facilities.

“I am delighted the Fuchs team has secured Hoffman as a Fuchs distributor,” says Tim Gerbus, North American Fuchs sales director. “Hoffman has been providing best-in-class service in New Jersey, southern New York and eastern PA since 1920. They provide complete customer service to all their market segments and have extensive knowledge and experience in the material handling industry.”

In addition to sales and rental opportunities, Hoffman Equipment will provide parts, service and warranty support for Fuchs material handlers using factory-trained technicians.

A list of Fuchs dealers is available at www.terex-fuchs.com/us/find-your-dealer/laender/united-states-of-america-usa.html.

FCC Environmental Services, the U.S. subsidiary of the environmental services division of FCC Group, Spain, has been awarded three new contracts in the state of Texas, increasing the company’s order book by $7 million (6.12 million euros), according to a news release from FCC.

To date, FCC has signed 10 contracts with municipalities in the state of Texas and two with municipalities in Florida, for a total of 12 contracts in the U.S.

With 235,000 inhabitants, Garland is one of the 10 most populated cities in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan region. Since 2016, FCC has managed all the recyclables generated by Garland residents—approximately 10,000 tons per year—which are processed at the recycling facility FCC developed in the city of Dallas.

FCC also has been awarded the contract to process all recyclables from the city of Lewisville for a term of nine years, including extensions. With a population of 106,000, Lewisville is one of the fastest growing cities in North Texas, FCC says. Through this agreement, FCC will recycle and market all recyclables for the city, which amount to approximately 5,500 tons per year. FCC will process the collected material at its material recovery facility (MRF) in Dallas.

FCC’s Dallas MRF was named Recycling Facility of the Year in 2017 by the National Waste & Recycling Association, Arlington, Virginia.

FCC’s newest recycling facility in Houston will have a capacity of 145,000 tons per year and is expected to begin operations by March 2019, according to the company. FCC says it has a 15-year contract with the city of Houston and has accumulated a total order book value of more than $900 million in the U.S., serving more than 8 million Americans.

World crude steel production for the 64 countries reporting to the Brussels- based World Steel Association (Worldsteel) was 156.6 million metric tons in October 2018, or 5.8 percent higher than it was in October 2017.

The U.S. lead the other reporting countries in terms of production gains for the month. The country’s steelmakers produced 7.6 million metric tons of crude steel in October 2018, an increase of 10.5 percent compared with October 2017.

That production figure was dwarfed by China’s crude steel production for the month, however. That country produced 82.6 million metric tons of crude steel, an increase of 9.1 percent compared with October 2017, according to Worldsteel.

India, which produced 8.8 million metric tons, saw a slight increase of 0.4 percent from its production in October 2017, while South Korea’s production grew by 3.5 percent from October 2017 to 6.2 million metric tons.

Japan’s crude steel production, however, decreased year over year by 4.5 percent to 8.6 million metric tons in October 2018.

In the EU, France produced 1.3 million metric tons of crude steel in October 2018, Worldsteel reports, which is a 3.5 percent decrease compared with October 2017. Spain also saw its production decline year over year by 7.4 percent, having produced 1.3 million metric tons in October 2018. Turkey’s production for October 2018 was 3.2 million metric tons, a decrease of 4.3 percent compared with October 2017. Also posting a decline in production for October was Ukraine. At 1.8 million metric tons, that country produced 6.7 percent less than in October 2017.

Italy’s crude steel production for October 2018 saw modest growth, having increased by 1.1 percent to 2.3 million metric tons.