Steel export volumes from Southeast Asia surged by 16-17 percent year on year exceeding 7 million mt in the first half of 2019, according to the latest information from the South East Asia Iron and Steel Institute (SEAISI). Both longs and flat steel export shipments posted double-digit growth. Although Vietnam remained the major regional exporter, Indonesia and Malaysia posted the most robust increases during the given period.
Vietnamese mills increased their steel exports by eight percent year on year to about 3.4 million mt in the January-June period this year, which was more than 50 percent of total shipments from the region. This was mainly due to much higher sales from Vietnam of long steel and semi-finished products, which increased by about 38 percent year on year to 1.1 million mt. At the same time, Vietnam’s flat steel export shipments declined by 2.5 percent year on year due to sustainable domestic demand and higher trade restrictions.
Indonesia managed to almost double its flats exports to 1.5 million mt in the first half, while its long steel sales remained limited.
Malaysia was actively increasing its presence in the longs export market due to still subdued local demand and high long steel capacities. According to the SEAISI, Malaysia’s export of bars doubled, while its shipments of wire rod surged by more than fivefold in the period. Malaysia posted the higher steel export growth among ASEAN countries, up 55 percent year on year.
Thailand was the only country which witnessed a decline in exports. Its long steel sales increased slightly, but its flat steel shipments dropped by 26 percent due to high competition abroad.
Steel exports from Southeast Asia in January-June 2019
|
Country |
Export volume (million mt) |
Y-o-y change (%) |
|
Vietnam |
3.4 |
+8 |
|
Indonesia |
1.6 |
+42 |
|
Malaysia |
0.9 |
+55 |
|
Thailand |
0.7 |
-11.3 |
Source - SEAISI