Coatesville’s steelworkers help ArcelorMittal hammer billions of dollars into its local economies each year, but the output of that key American resource has developed some wrinkles from competing with imported steel.

In its latest report, ArcelorMittal expressed being “optimistic about the future of our business” despite decreases in steel shipments “in nearly every major market in the last three years.”

“We have seen a slow and progressive recovery, year-over-year, since the economic downturn of 2009,” the company stated. “That recovery was dampened significantly by the flood of imports arriving in the United States in recent years.”

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Last year, ArcelorMittal produced 14.6 million tons of raw steel, up from 14.4 million tons in 2015 but down from a recent peak of 15.3 million tons in 2013. Steel sales peaked in 2014 to a diverse range of industries, including transportation, energy, defense, machinery, appliance, construction, and packaging — 40 percent to service centers or distribution outlets, 30 percent to automotive customers, and 12 percent to clients in energy/mining/chemicals/water.

In making that steel, the company employed more than 18,000 people and contributed $2.2 billion through wages and benefits, plus another $41 million each year in property taxes.

Read more about the current state of ArcelorMittal steel here, and check out previous VISTA Today coverage of the steelmaker here.

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