ISSB: China on course to be net steel exporter
The London-based Iron and Steel Statistics Bureau (ISSB) suggests that
China could become a net exporter of steel products in 2005 since
production growth has begun overtaking demand.
Chinas ferocious appetite for steel first showed itself in 2002, when the country became the worlds top steel importer. While the country retains that distinction through the present, it has also begun to show its might as a steel exporting nation. Last year,
China emerged as the worlds fifth largest exporter of steel.
Chinas net imports fell from 30 million in 2003 to nearly 15 million in 2004.
Steve Mackrell, director of ISSB, commented that
China could become a net steel exporter as early as this year, based on the countrys current trend. He pointed out that
China was in fact a net steel exporter during the final third of 2004.
However, Beijing could throw a wrench in the works by canceling the tax rebate on steel exports.
China stands very little chance of becoming a net steel exporter in the near future if the Chinese government pushes ahead with its plans to rescind the export tax rebate.