Posted on 11 May 2022
Thailand's finished steel consumption and production fell sharply during the first quarter, Kallanish notes.
Overall steel consumption during January-March contracted by 17.8% year-on-year, according to the Iron & Steel Institute of Thailand. The fall occurred across the board for every steel product. Production during the first three months fell by 15.4% to 1.89mt. Thai imports in the period were 2.48mt, down 17.8% y-o-y, while exports fell by a marginal 1.4% to 322,000t (see tables).
"Economic momentum [in Thailand] likely cooled somewhat in the first quarter of this year, weighed down by higher Covid-19 cases after a healthy GDP rebound in Q4 2021," according to FocusEconomics. It notes that manufacturing activity during the quarter weakened compared to Q4 2021.
Weak demand and low cash liquidity in the market are the main reasons for the lower steel consumption, a Bangkok-based trader says. "Lack of steel demand, delays in megaprojects and the lack of workers," are hampering market activity, says another.
Source:Kallanish
