The South East Asia Iron and Steel Institute (SEAISI) has announced that, according to preliminary data, apparent steel consumption in the ASEAN region reached 70 million mt in 2015, an increase of seven percent year on year, mainly due to strong consumption growth rates in Vietnam and Philippines.
Vietnam's demand for steel is estimated to have increased by 26 percent year on year to 18 million mt in 2015. Domestic output continued to expand significantly, rising by 27 percent year on year to seven million mt. In 2015, imports also continued to increase significantly, rising 26 percent to almost 14 million mt. Exports also continued to increase, by more than 500,000 mt in 2015.
In 2015, steel demand in the Philippines rose by 15 percent year on year to around eight million mt. Domestic production in the Philippines increased by one million metric tons in 2015, while imports surged moderately by four percent compared to 2014.
Meanwhile, in 2015, steel demand in Malaysia is expected to be close to 11 million mt and domestic production is expected to remain stagnant at around 4.7 million mt. Malaysia’s imports increased by approximately 500,000 mt in 2015, while steel exports declined moderately.
Singapore, the smallest steel consuming country in the region, experienced a higher growth rate in steel demand of five percent year on year to around four million mt in 2015. However, in the given year domestic production declined by nearly six percent, while imports rose marginally to slightly above five million mt, both year on year. Meanwhile, Singapore’s steel exports declined by seven percent year on year to 1.8 million mt in the same period.
According to the SEAISI, Thailand’s steel demand is expected to decline by three percent year on year to fall below 17 million mt in 2015, thus downgrading itself to be the second largest steel consuming country in the region, after Vietnam. The country’s domestic steel output contracted by five percent to around 6.5 million mt compared to the previous year. Its steel imports declined moderately by two percent year on year to around 11 million mt. However, in 2015, Thailand’s steel exports amounted to one million mt, up by five percent year on year.
In the given year, Indonesia’s demand for steel is expected to drop by more than three percent year on year to register a volume of slightly above 12 million mt. Indonesia’s domestic production contracted by five percent to around six million mt and its imports increased marginally, while exports surged strongly to over one million metric tons in 2015.