According to a report on June 24,
in the past four years, Chinese steel companies have invested in a new steel
project with an annual output of 32 MnT in Indonesia and Malaysia, which is
equivalent to more than 40% of the steel consumption of the 10 member countries
of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2016.
China`s plan on reduction of domestic
capacity is steadily underway, and it will be a good alternative to export
steel products to Southeast Asian markets given that the export to the United
States is limited. In Indonesia, China Qingshan Holding Group has invested in
the expansion of low-quality nickel smelting facilities with an annual output
of 1.5 MnT. In Malaysia, Hebei Dongshan Group and China Metallurgical Overseas
Engineering Co., Ltd. are cooperating to build a coking coal and cement plant
next to a new USD 3 billion steel plant.
If China`s steel industry wants to maintain
steady exports and offset the impact of the US market, it is necessary to grasp
the entire Southeast Asian market. As the continuous adjustment of the global
industrial chain, the economical human resources in Southeast Asia have
attracted a large amount of investment, which has led to the rapid development
of manufacturing and processing industries in the region, driving the demand
for steel to grow. The demand for steel in the 10 ASEAN countries in 2017 is as
high as 70 MnT and it is expected to grow to 80 MnT in 2018.
According to the World Steel Association
statistics, Thailand imported 12.6 MnT of steel in 2017, becoming the world`s
second largest net importer of steel after the United States while Vietnam`s
net import of steel is 12.3 MnT, ranking third in the world; If add up the
Philippines and Malaysia markets,the net import of steel in the above five
Southeast Asian countries reached 46.9 MnT in 2017. This is a reflection of the
imbalance of steel supply and demand in the Southeast Asia region.
However, China`s export of steel products
to Southeast Asia is not always smooth. The cheap steel from China will first
compete directly with local steel companies in Southeast Asia and will also
face the impact of traditional Japanese and Korean exporters. But one thing can
benefit is China’s experience in technology, production, planning and
construction in the steel industry as a “sought after resource” in the
Southeast Asian steel market. We can take the advantage of “Chinese experience”
as an add-on to compete with the Southeast Asian market and form complementary
relation with local markets to realise increased steel exports.
http://www.miningnewspro.com/en/News/210135/Will Chinese Mills Increase Steel Exports to SE Asian Nations ?