In October this year, China exported 4.782 million mt of finished steel, down 13.1 percent year on year and decreasing by 13.5 percent compared to the previous month, as announced by the Chinese customs authorities on November 8. Chinese exporters’ offer prices have remained uncompetitive in the global market, resulting in the lower export volume in October.
Most sources believe that export shipments will remain at reduced levels during the remainder of the year. In the January-October period this year, China exported 55.087 million mt of finished steel, down 5.8 percent year on year, 0.8 percentage points higher than the decline rate recorded for the first nine months of the year.