As reported by the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) on December 14, officials from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), the CISA and the China Association of Metal Scrap Utilization (CAMU) have stated that China’s annual steel scrap recycling volume is expected to reach 200 million mt in the future, increasing from the current volume of less than 100 million mt, provided China’s annual crude steel output maintains levels of around 700 million mt in the coming 10 years.
CISA vice president Wang Xiaoqi noted that China’s crude steel output in the 1949-2010 period had totaled 5.76 billion metric tons, while in 2011 China produced 685 million mt of crude steel and is expected to produce around 720 million mt in the current year. Mr. Wang also stated that whether Chinese steel enterprises will consume more scrap will depend on the competitiveness of scrap prices compared to prices of iron ore.