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 2002            January 2001
                                     Cumulative To           Cumulative To
                                     Date - Final            Date - Final
     Commodity                                           
     Grouping                      Quantity     Value      Quantity     Value
                                             
Total Selected Commodities           75,111     132,961      69,707     144,122

Ingots And Steel For Castings         1,808       2,077       1,181       1,800
Blooms, Billets And Slabs            17,862      18,705      18,971      22,050
Wire Rods                             6,055       9,007       4,933       9,250
Structural Shapes Heavy                 251         761         305         796
Plates Cut Lengths                    2,692       4,484       1,882       3,954
Plates In Coils                       2,692       3,325         804       1,214
Bars - Hot Rolled                     2,843       5,769       1,987       4,442
Bars - Light Shaped                   1,338       3,131         973       1,999
Bars - Cold Finished                  6,879      16,332       6,334      16,605
Stainless Pipe & Tubing               6,447      23,590       6,802      27,893
Wire Drawn                            2,966       9,153       2,479       9,395
Sheets Hot Rolled                     1,866       1,981         930       1,346
Sheets Cold Rolled                   18,726      26,719      19,384      33,924
Strip - Hot Rolled                       77         183          89         203
Strip - Cold Rolled                   2,607       7,745       2,654       9,250

CONTACT: For more information, contact Haydn R. Mearkle (301-457-2246) or Nick
         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."