S. Korea’s local steel sales drop in Q1
Korea Iron and Steel Association disclosed that the country's domestic steel sales fell 4.1% to 11.8 million tons in the January-March 2005 period from 12.3 million tons from a year earlier. The stationary construction sector and a rise in steel imports affected the decline in domestic steel sales negatively. However, the association indicates that they don't expect the downward trend to continue in the coming months. According to data, steel products imports rose 22.9% year on year to 5.1 million tons in the first quarter of 2005. Exports of steel products reached 3.8 million tons in the first quarter, up 11.3% from a year earlier.