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.
 
                                      March 2002              March 2001
                                      Cumulative To           Cumulative To
                                      Date - Final            Date - Final
     Commodity
     Grouping                       Quantity     Value      Quantity     Value
 
Total Selected Commodities          245,497     404,352     213,216     428,685
 
Ingots And Steel For Castings         7,827       8,846       4,379       5,936
Blooms, Billets And Slabs            85,051      89,959      61,743      69,982
Wire Rods                            18,204      28,886      15,173      28,729
Structural Shapes Heavy                 603       1,711         587       1,787
Plates Cut Lengths                    8,807      14,628       6,630      14,456
Plates In Coils                       7,215       8,445       3,203       4,981
Bars - Hot Rolled                     6,535      13,555       6,126      13,960
Bars - Light Shaped                   2,220       5,258       2,365       5,103
Bars - Cold Finished                 16,151      38,343      20,891      54,098
Stainless Pipe & Tubing              17,962      66,686      19,132      77,285
Wire Drawn                            7,604      23,756       7,429      27,375
Sheets Hot Rolled                     6,405       5,287       3,218       4,480
Sheets Cold Rolled                   53,426      75,954      55,065      95,450
Strip - Hot Rolled                      111         263         275         541
Strip - Cold Rolled                   7,376      22,776       7,000      24,523
 
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."