We spoke with Ji Seob Choi, Posco Assan TST CEO, about the price and demand outlook in the stainless steel market, the impact of protectionist trade policies on the industry, and priorities for ensuring fair competition.
What can you tell us about the trend in stainless steel prices and raw material costs? What are your expectations for the coming period?
Stainless steel prices are shaped not only by supply and demand for finished products, but also by the prices of raw material inputs such as nickel, energy costs and fluctuations in logistics. Recently, relatively weak global demand has put pressure on finished product prices, while production costs have not declined to the same extent. This has created a significant imbalance between prices and costs for all market participants, particularly producers.
On the other hand, while global stainless steel production continued to increase in 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, it would not be wrong to say that demand growth failing to keep pace has put pressure on prices. We observe a general market expectation that end-user demand and prices will recover seasonally from September 2026 through the end of the year.
At Posco Assan TST, regardless of market prices, we are focusing on improving our efficiency, managing our costs in a controlled manner, and providing our customers with regular, high-quality and sustainable supplies.
How do you assess the impact of the antidumping duties imposed on stainless steel products originating from China and Indonesia in December 2025? Do you think these measures have met expectations in terms of reducing unfair competition and supporting domestic producers?
First of all, it should be noted that, within the scope of the investigation concluded in December 2025, definitive antidumping measures were imposed on cold rolled stainless flat steel products originating from China, while the investigation into imports originating from Indonesia was terminated without measures.
We view the measure imposed on products originating from China as a positive development in terms of reducing dumped imports and unfair price competition. However, it would not be right to expect a measure targeting a single country to solve all the industry's problems. Imports need to be regularly monitored by country, product group, price level and volume. The fact that trade flows can shift to different countries within a short period also creates the risk of the measures being circumvented.
Today, many major markets around the world, particularly the United States and the European Union, have much more comprehensive and stringent trade protection measures in place for the steel industry. Therefore, we believe that efforts to preserve a fair competitive environment in Turkey should continue without interruption in line with current import trends. The objective of these efforts should not be to completely prevent imports, but to ensure that domestic production, imports and consumers can operate within a balanced and sustainable market structure.
How are US tariffs, EU trade policies and other protectionist measures affecting global stainless steel trade? What consequences do you expect these developments to have for the Turkish market?
Global steel trade is becoming increasingly protectionist and regionalized. Such measures make it more difficult to access protected markets, while causing excess capacity to be redirected toward more open markets. From the perspective of the Turkish stainless steel market, the most significant risk is that low-priced products unable to enter major markets such as the EU and the US could be redirected to Turkey.
Looking at Turkey's stainless steel exports, since a significant portion of these exports goes to European Union countries, the EU's quota measures directly affect our exports. We believe that the industry should act with an awareness that attempts to circumvent the EU's safeguard measures through different methods, as seen in previous years, could harm our industry in the future, and that all market players should shape their export sales policies accordingly.
At Posco Assan TST, we operate in compliance with the European Union's quota and trade regulations and seek to maximize our exports on a sustainable basis without disrupting the market and price balance in Europe.
How are current economic conditions, access to financing and high costs affecting the industry?
The relatively high cost per ton of stainless steel compared to other steel products means that companies operating in the industry require significant amounts of financing.
Difficulties in accessing financing and persistently high financing costs are putting significant pressure on both producers and consumers. Customers placing shorter-term orders in smaller volumes and longer collection periods are slowing the cash cycle in the market.
From the producers' perspective, meanwhile, production costs are rising, but intense competition from imports makes it impossible to reflect these increases in sales prices to the same extent.
Therefore, the current period is one in which cash flow and credit risks need to be managed very carefully, rather than focusing primarily on growth and increasing profits.
While Posco Assan TST has a strong financial structure, we will continue to manage our risks effectively with the support of our customers with whom we have established stable and secure relationships.
What steps do you think should be taken in the coming period to increase the competitiveness of the stainless steel industry? What are your recommendations in terms of public policies and industry priorities?
To increase the industry's competitiveness, the priority should be to preserve a fair market structure. As the US and the EU increasingly strengthen their protectionist trade policies, Turkey also needs to implement appropriate trade measures to protect its domestic industry and ensure fair competitive conditions for its businesses. It is crucial to regularly monitor dumped imports, respond quickly to trade diversion and prevent existing measures from being circumvented. The objective here is not to prevent imports, but to establish fair competitive conditions between domestic producers and imported products.
In addition, we believe Turkey needs a long-term government strategy aimed at increasing stainless steel consumption. Stainless steel offers significant advantages in terms of total life-cycle costs due to its long service life, low maintenance requirements, hygienic properties, corrosion resistance and recyclability.
Developing technical standards and public procurement criteria based on longevity and total cost of ownership in areas such as public infrastructure, water systems, healthcare, food, transportation, energy and urban furniture will increase stainless steel consumption and industrial capacity in Turkey. This approach will contribute not only to our industry, but also to reducing imports, using resources efficiently and promoting sustainable development.
What are your expectations for the remainder of 2026?
For the remainder of 2026, the global supply-demand balance will determine the direction of the market. The expected contraction in nickel supply and rising logistics costs resulting from geopolitical uncertainties will also be key factors determining the direction of stainless steel prices.
In Turkey, meanwhile, we expect a gradual recovery in activity during the final four months of the year, supported by the normalization of inventory levels, the realization of demand postponed during the summer period, and potential demand from export-oriented industries.
At Posco Assan TST, we focus on long-term sustainability rather than short-term market fluctuations. Our priority is to ensure that Turkish industrial companies have regular, high-quality and reliable access to the stainless steel raw materials they need, while improving our production efficiency and providing uninterrupted service to our customers. Although market conditions are challenging, we remain confident in Turkey's industrial potential and the long-term growth prospects for stainless steel consumption.
