Steel Industry Forecast to Grow
After 4 Years of Stagnation
After 4 Years of Stagnation
According to the World Steel Association (WSA), global steel demand in 2014 is expected to reach 1.52 billion tons, up 3.3% from 1.47 billion tons in 2013 and up 6.3% from 1.43 billion tons in 2012.
An executive in charge of business operations at a Korean steel company said, 'Despite a slowdown in the growth of steel demand in the Chinese market, demand will increase significantly this year in other regions like the Middle East and Latin America."
It is also a positive factor that the Chinese steel industry is apparently just 'catching its breath,' as a hot wind of restructuring is blowing through the Chinese steel industry, which has brought an excess of supply to the global steel market with a low-price offensive. To resolve
the supply excess, the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology recently announced that it will accelerate M&As among steel companies.
The Japanese market situation is not in bad shape either for the domestic steel industry. At present, Japan's representative blast-furnace mills are appraised as lacking sufficient capacity for exports. To address this shortcoming, they plan to modify or repair furnaces one after the other. Nippon Steel Sumitomo Metals, POSCO's strongest competitor, is scheduled to repair Furnace #4 at its Yawata Steel Works from end January to end April this year. Another competitor, JFE Steel, also plans to repair its thick plate and rolling mills in Kurashiki, western Japan, until March this year.
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