Steel scrap is increasingly being regarded as a raw material for manufacturing new products worldwide. As a result ferrous scrap--iron and steel--has become a world-traded commodity. A few figures tell the story. The recycling rate for steel, which stood at around 80 percent a few years ago, rose to 92 percent in 2011, the most recent year for which statistics are available from the Steel Recycling Institute. Over 85 million tons of steel scrap made their way to steelmaking furnaces in 2011, an increase of 10 million net tons over 2010. The increased demand for steel scrap is reflected in trade statistics. The United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database shows that the volume of global scrap exports increased from 9.3 million metric tons in 1990 to 106 million metric tons in 2011. Figures from the Bureau of International Recycling show that total world steel scrap use increased 7.6 percent in 2011 to reach 570 million metric tons. The globalization of the ferrous scrap market, however, is less than perfect. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) reported in 2012 that North American and European ferrous scrap move freely around the world, but that some 19 percent of the ferrous scrap trade is increasingly burdened by various trade restrictions. China is the perennial whipping boy for this phenomenon, and, in fact, industry executives recently complained about this situation before the U.S. Congress. But China is by no means the only culprit. Recent reports show that dozens of other countries, including Ukraine and Armenia, are also imposing trade restrictions on iron and steel scrap in various ways and for various reasons. United States exports of iron and steel scrap represent a growing opportunity. According to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. International Trade Commission, U.S. exporters shipped 22.7 million metric tons of iron and steel scrap in 2011 as compared to 18.7 million tons in 2010, making the U.S. the world’s largest exporter of ferrous scrap. Steel trading statistics tend to lag by 18 months, so that there are no annual figures yet available for 2012. There was a report that steel scrap exports dipped toward the end of the year, but there is no indication that the upward trend has been reversed. China, Taiwan, South Korea, India, Canada, and Turkey represented the largest markets for exports of U.S. steel scrap in 2011. “This high level of scrap consumption is a reflection of the North American steel industry’s commitment to conserving energy and natural resources,” said Gregory Crawford, executive director of the Steel Recycling Institute. “Scrap steel is used in everyday products, including packaging, appliances, automobiles and construction. Each year, more steel is recycled in North America than paper, aluminum, plastic and glass combined.” With the overall steel recycling rate at 92 percent, the construction industry in North America led the way with a recycling rate of 98 percent for plates and beams, followed by automobile recycling at 94.5 percent, appliances at 90 percent, and steel packaging at 70.8 percent. “While steel continues to be North America’s most recycled material, there is still progress that can be made,” said Crawford. Some of this progress could be made in removing barriers to free trade. The 2012 OECD report noted that “waste and scrap exports are restricted in many parts of the world. Waste and scrap trade involving iron and steel and non-ferrous base metals (copper, aluminum, lead and zinc) tends to be more regulated than trade involving other metals.” The OECD found that in 2009, at least 19 percent of scrap of iron and steel, exported by a total of 34 countries, was subject to export restrictions. “Export restrictions dampen trade flows,” said the report. “In fact, some exports actually will not take place due to the very fact that export restrictions are in place. Export activity would be higher if restrictions did not exist.” The rationales which go