Posted on 24 May 2024
China’s total finished steel import dropped by 2.7 million tonnes in the first ten months of 2023. Meanwhile, the finished steel export jumped significantly from 52 million tonnes in the first ten months of 2022 to 71 million tonnes in the same period of 2023.
China’s import of finished steel to ASEAN-6 countries dropped from 1.7 million tonnes in the first ten months of 2022 to a million tonnes in the same period of 2023. On the other hand, the export to ASEAN-6 jumped by 5 million tonnes to nearly 20 million tonnes in the first ten months of 2023. Export of both long and flat steel registered a significant growth rate in 2023.
Majority of China’s import steel from ASEAN-6 were bar and cold rolled sheet/coil. Bar import was mostly from Malaysia. However, the volume dropped significantly from 435k tonnes in the first ten months of 2022 to 34k tonnes in the same period of 2023. Import of cold rolled sheet & strips remained significant, at 824k tonnes in the first ten months of 2023. Main source was Indonesia.
China exports various products to ASEAN-6. Export of rails & accessories doubled in volume to 108k tonnes in the first ten months of 2023. Major destinations were Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia.
Export of steel sheet piles rose 17% y-o-y to 623k tonnes. This was mainly the export to Philippines to serve high demand, especially for on-going land reclamation projects in Cebu, Manila and Bulacan.
Export of section jumped 300k tonnes to 1.15 million tonnes in the first ten months of 2023. Major destinations were Malaysia (407k tonnes), Philippines (297k tonnes), Singapore (190k tonnes) and Indonesia (101k tonnes).
China’s bar export to ASEAN-6 rose 19% y-o-y to 747k tonnes in the first ten months of 2023. Half of the volume was the export of alloyed steel bars. Major markets were Indonesia (255k tonnes), Vietnam (159k tonnes) and Thailand (154k tonnes).
China exports wire rod to many countries in ASEAN-6 and total volume jumped by nearly 600k tonnes to 1.54 million tonnes. One-third of the volume was export of alloyed wire rods. Major destinations were Thailand (436k tonnes), Philippines (395k tonnes), Vietnam (341k tonnes), Indonesia (240k tonnes) and Malaysia (94k tonnes).
As for flat steel products export to ASEAN-6, export of hot rolled coil nearly doubled in volume from 3.5 million tonnes from January to October 2022 to 6.2 million tonnes in the same period of 2023. The largest destination was Vietnam (4.8 million tonnes), followed by the export to Thailand (592k tonnes), Indonesia (382k tonnes), Malaysia (323k tonnes) and Philippines (146k tonnes).
China’s export of hot rolled plate increased 27% y-o-y to 1.4 million tonnes. Vietnam was the largest destination with a total volume of 592k tonnes, followed by export to Indonesia (382k tonnes) and Malaysia (323k tonnes).
Export of cold rolled sheets, on the other hand, declined slightly, at 4.5% y-o-y to 821k tonnes in the first ten months of 2023. Major destinations were Indonesia (238k tonnes), Vietnam (178k tonnes), Thailand (133k tonnes), Malaysia (131k tonnes) and Philippines (111k tonnes).
As for the export of coated sheet, China mainly exports coated steel for construction usage to ASEAN-6. Main exported products were galvanized sheet and color coated sheet.
The export of galvanized sheet jumped from 2.1 million tonnes in the first ten months of 2022 to 2.6 million tonnes in the same period of 2023. Thailand is the largest market within the region (1.03 million tonnes), followed by Philippines (809k tonnes).
As for export of color coated sheet, total export to ASEAN-6 surged by 100k tonnes to 1.3 million tonnes. Major destinations were Philippines (427k tonnes), Thailand (343k tonnes), Indonesia (256k tonnes) and Vietnam (176k tonnes).
China’s export of ‘other coated’ sheet increased 13% y-o-y to 584k tonnes. Two major destinations were Thailand (371k tonnes) and Indonesia (168k tonnes).
Export of galvalume sheet rose moderately, by 7% y-o-y to 547k tonnes. Major destinations were Indonesia (217k tonnes) and Philippines (138k tonnes).
Export of tinplate/tin free stagnated at 385k tonnes. China sent tinplate/tin free to various countries in the ASEAN-6.
Along with China’s challenged high steel output amidst slack demand, this led to inventory excesses and steel mills had to explore overseas market. ASEAN, where there is a significant growth in steel demand for construction sector, has become an export target for China. SEAISI is monitoring China’s export to ASEAN and will keep members posted occasionally.
Source:SEAISI
