General situation of steel import and export
In May, my country imported 631,000 tons of steel, an increase of 46,000 tons month-on-month and a year-on-year decrease of 175,000 tons; the average import unit price was US$1,737.2/ton, a month-on-month decrease of 1.8% and a year-on-year increase of 4.5%. From January to May, imported steel was 3.129 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 37.1%; the average import unit price was US$1,728.5/ton, a year-on-year increase of 12.8%; imported steel billets were 1.027 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 68.8%.
In May, my country exported 8.356 million tons of steel, an increase of 424,000 tons month-on-month, the fifth consecutive month of growth, and an increase of 597,000 tons year-on-year; the average export unit price was US$922.2/ton, a decrease of 16.0% month-on-month and a year-on-year decrease of 33.1%. From January to May, the export of steel products was 36.369 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 40.9%; the average export unit price was 1143.7 US dollars/ton, a year-on-year decrease of 18.3%; the export of steel billets was 1.407 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 930,000 tons; the net export of crude steel was 34.847 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 18.3%; An increase of 16.051 million tons, an increase of 85.4%.
Export of steel products
In May, my country’s steel exports rose for five consecutive months, the highest level since October 2016. The export volume of flat products hit a record high, among which the increase of hot-rolled coils and medium and heavy plates was the most obvious. Exports to Asia and South America increased significantly, among which Indonesia, South Korea, Pakistan, and Brazil all increased by about 120,000 tons month-on-month. Details are as follows:
By species
In May, my country exported 5.474 million tons of flat metal, an increase of 3.9% month-on-month, accounting for 65.5% of the total export volume, the highest level in history. Among them, the month-on-month changes in hot-rolled coils and medium and heavy plates are the most obvious. The export volume of hot-rolled coils increased by 10.0% to 1.878 million tons, and the export volume of medium and heavy plates increased by 16.3% to 842,000 tons. highest level in years. In addition, the export volume of bars and wires increased by 14.6% month-on-month to 1.042 million tons, the highest level in the past two years, of which bars and wires increased by 18.0% and 6.2% month-on-month respectively.
In May, my country exported 352,000 tons of stainless steel, a month-on-month decrease of 6.4%, accounting for 4.2% of total exports; the average export price was US$2470.1/ton, a month-on-month decrease of 28.5%. Exports to major markets such as India, South Korea, and Russia fell month-on-month, among which exports to India remained at historical highs, and exports to South Korea have fallen for two consecutive months, which is related to the resumption of production in Posco.
Sub-regional situation
In May, my country exported 2.09 million tons of steel products to ASEAN, a decrease of 2.2% month-on-month; among them, exports to Thailand and Vietnam decreased by 17.3% and 13.9% month-on-month respectively, while exports to Indonesia rebounded sharply by 51.8% to 361,000 tons, the highest in the past two years level. Exports to South America were 708,000 tons, an increase of 27.4% from the previous month. The increase was mainly from Brazil, which increased by 66.5% to 283,000 tons from the previous month. Among the main export destinations, exports to South Korea increased by 120,000 tons to 821,000 tons from the previous month, and exports to Pakistan increased by 120,000 tons to 202,000 tons from the previous month.
Exports of Primary Products
In May, my country exported 422,000 tons of primary steel products, including 419,000 tons of steel billets, with an average export price of US$645.8/ton, a month-on-month increase of 2.1%.
Imports of steel products
In May, my country’s steel imports rose slightly from a low level. The imports are mainly plates, and the large imports of cold-rolled thin plates, medium plates, and medium-thick and wide steel strips all increased month-on-month, and imports from Japan and Indonesia all rebounded. Details are as follows:
By species
In May, my country imported 544,000 tons of flat materials, an increase of 8.8% from the previous month, and the proportion increased to 86.2%. Imports of large cold-rolled sheets, medium plates, and medium-thick and wide steel strips all increased month-on-month, of which medium-thick and wide steel strips increased by 69.9% to 91,000 tons, the highest level since October last year. The import volume of coated plates decreased significantly, among which the plated plates and coated plates decreased by 9.7% and 30.7% respectively from the previous month. In addition, pipe imports fell by 2.2% to 16,000 tons, of which welded steel pipes fell by 9.6%.
In May, my country imported 142,000 tons of stainless steel, a month-on-month increase of 16.1%, accounting for 22.5% of total imports; the average import price was US$3,462.0/ton, a month-on-month decrease of 1.8%. The increase mainly came from stainless billet, which increased by 11,000 tons to 11,800 tons month-on-month. my country’s stainless steel imports mainly come from Indonesia. In May, 115,000 tons of stainless steel were imported from Indonesia, a month-on-month increase of 23.9%, accounting for 81.0%.
Sub-regional situation
In May, my country imported 388,000 tons from Japan and South Korea, an increase of 9.9% month-on-month, accounting for 61.4% of the total imports; among them, 226,000 tons were imported from Japan, an increase of 25.6% month-on-month. Imports from ASEAN were 116,000 tons, a month-on-month increase of 10.5%, of which Indonesian imports increased by 9.3% to 101,000 tons, accounting for 87.6%.
Primary product imports
In May, my country imported 255,000 tons of primary steel products (including steel billets, pig iron, direct reduced iron, and recycled steel raw materials), a month-on-month decrease of 30.7%; among them, imported steel billets were 110,000 tons, a month-on-month decrease of 55.2%.
Future outlook
On the domestic front, the domestic market has weakened significantly since mid-March, and China’s export quotations have fallen along with domestic trade prices. The export price advantages of hot-rolled coils and rebar (3698, -31.00, -0.83%) have become prominent, and the RMB has continued to depreciate , the benefit of export is better than that of domestic sales, and the return of funds is more guaranteed than that of domestic trade. Enterprises are more motivated to export, and traders’ domestic sales to foreign trade transactions have also increased. In overseas markets, the demand performance is still weak, but the supply has recovered. According to the statistics of the World Steel Association, the average daily output of crude steel in the world except mainland China has rebounded month-on-month, and the pressure on supply and demand is on the rise. Taking into account the previous orders and the impact of the depreciation of the RMB, it is expected that steel exports will remain resilient in the short term, but the export volume may fall under pressure in the second half of the year, the cumulative growth rate will gradually narrow, and the import volume will remain low. At the same time, it is necessary to be alert to the risk of intensified trade frictions caused by the increase in export volume
Post time: Jul-10-2023