UNFAIRLY TRADED IMPORTS IMPEDE OHIO STEEL SHIPMENTS, PRODUCTION IN FIRST QUARTER 1999

COLUMBUS, Ohio (May 28, 1999 ) –  First quarter 1999 leading indicators for Ohio steel producers were down significantly over first quarter 1998 - a firm indication that unfairly traded imports are continuing to have an impact on the industry.

Ohio steel production in the first quarter 1999 was 4.1 million tons, down 7 percent from the first quarter of 1998. Shipments were 3.5 million tons, down nearly 16 percent from the year-ago period.

These decreases reflect the unsatisfactory improvement in unfairly traded steel imports, which reached record levels in the fall of 1998. After four consecutive months of decreases beginning in November 1998, steel imports shot up 25 percent between March and February 1999.

Capital investment spending for the first quarter of 1999 was $86.9 million, a decrease of 2.5 percent over the year-ago period.

In January 1999, the Ohio Steel Council projected capital spending among steel producers at more than $538 million for 1999, but noted that the spending level could be affected if there were not a speedy resolution to the import crisis.

"We believe very much that there can be an equitable resolution to the import crisis, but while we have had the ardent support of Ohio's state and federal legislators, we have yet to see effective measures taken. The flood of unfairly traded steel imports continues to have a profound impact on Ohio's economy," said George Manos, co-chairman of the Ohio Steel Council and vice president of businesses processes at USS/KOBE Steel Corp.

Employment declined slightly between the first quarter of 1998 and 1999, largely due to attrition. However, employment figures do not reflect the hundreds laid off because of the import crisis since laid-off employees are still employees, according to the Youngstown State University's Center for Urban Studies, which compiles the quarterly data.

The Ohio Steel Council, in existence since 1991 and appointed by the governor, is a public-private partnership designed to strengthen ties among the steel industry, the state of Ohio and its citizens. The Council's member organizations are AK Steel Corp., Armco Inc., CSC Ltd., LTV Steel Co., North Star Steel Ohio, Pittsburgh Logistics Systems, Inc., Republic Technologies International, The Timken Company, USS/KOBE Steel Company, Washington Steel, WCI Steel, Inc., Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp., the United Steelworkers of America, the Ohio Legislature, Ohio Department of Development, The Ohio State University and Youngstown State University.