Canadian apparent steel consumption through August increased from 9.2 million to 11 million tons. Autos, appliances, and tractors Through October, U.S. service centers shipped 24.3 million tons of steel. They'll ship 28.5 million tons in 1997, estimates David Roland, president of the Steel Service Center Institute. That would be a record and a 5.9-percent increase from 1996. We're seeing strong shipments across the board.
Stainless volume is still strong.
Tubing and piping remain strong. Flat-rolled is always very competitive. As we look at '98, it will be very consistent with what we saw in '97. Other end-users of steel will have increases, but not as strong as in 1997. Oil and gas drilling will grow by 6 percent this year, compared with a 25-percent gain in 1997.