Chi Jingdong, deputy president of the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA), stated at a steel industry forum held in Beijing on November 23 that the increase in China’s steel consumption in the first ten months of the current year has mainly been due to fixed-asset investment (FAI).
Mr. Chi stated that, according to the CISA’s calculations, in the January-October period this year China’s apparent consumption of steel amounted to 782 million mt, up around seven percent year on year, with China’s crude steel output in the given period increasing by 7.2 percent, its finished steel imports decreasing by 11.9 percent and its finished steel exports down 5.1 percent, year on year. At the same time, real steel consumption growth in China was even higher, up 7.9 percent from the same period of the previous year. The CISA official indicated that 83 percent of domestic consumption was due to FAI, with FAI still being the most important driver of higher steel consumption growth in China.