In November this year, China exported 5.59 million mt of finished steel, up 28.2 percent year on year and rising by 7.8 percent month on month, as announced by the Chinese customs authorities on December 7. The unexpected slowdown in local demand during the traditional peak season of September and October pushed Chinese mills to increase export sales, in particular for November shipment, to partially offset declines in domestic shipments.
As a result, in the first 11 months of the current year, China exported 61.948 million mt of finished steel, up 0.4 percent year on year. Exports of steel from China thus switched from the negative zone, having indicated a decrease of 1.8 percent in the first 10 months of the year.
China’s finished steel imports came to 752,000 mt in November, down 47 percent year on year and declining 2.6 percent month on month.
In the January-November period this year, China imported 9.867 million mt of finished steel, down 25.6 percent year on year.
As for the expectations for the coming year, market sources and analysts expect at least the same export volumes or slight increase, while imports will remain at reduced levels.
