Not Seasonally Adjusted

    Exhibit 2b.  U.S. Imports For Consumption of Stainless Steel Products:
                               (Census Basis)

            Quantity in metric tons/value In thousands of dollars.
                Details may not equal totals due to rounding.

                                      January 2001           January 2000
                                      Cumulative To          Cumulative To
                                      Date - Final           Date - Final
     Commodity                                          
     Grouping                      Quantity     Value     Quantity     Value
                                             
Total Selected Commodities           69,707    144,122      88,045    170,511

Ingots And Steel For Castings         1,181      1,800          33         92
Blooms, Billets And Slabs            18,971     22,050      18,611     25,065
Wire Rods                             4,933      9,250       7,088     12,345
Structural Shapes Heavy                 305        796       1,319      2,480
Plates Cut Lengths                    1,882      3,954       4,128      8,131
Plates In Coils                         804      1,214       4,273      5,729
Bars - Hot Rolled                     1,987      4,442       2,025      5,257
Bars - Light Shaped                     973      1,999       1,097      2,141
Bars - Cold Finished                  6,334     16,605       7,262     16,344
Stainless Pipe & Tubing               6,802     27,893       7,330     25,185
Wire Drawn                            2,479      9,395       2,133      7,618
Sheets Hot Rolled                       930      1,346       2,323      2,975
Sheets Cold Rolled                   19,384     33,924      27,126     47,039
Strip - Hot Rolled                       89        203         189        331
Strip - Cold Rolled                   2,654      9,250       3,109      9,779

CONTACT: For more information, contact Haydn R. Mearkle (301-457-2246) or Nic
         Orsini (301-457-2311), Foreign Trade Division, U.S. Census Bureau.

NOTE:  For information on more detailed data available, please see record 
       titled "MORE DETAILED FOREIGN TRADE DATA AVAILABLE."