South Korea’s steel imports on the rise
South
Korea's steel imports are expected to reach new high this year due to the increase in imports of Chinese steel products.
South Korean Iron & Steel Association (KISA) stated that the country's steel imports rose 8.1 percent year on year to 17.4 million tons in the first eleven months of 2005.
This year's total steel imports are expected to exceed 17.7 million tons recorded last year.
Chinese steel shipments accounted for 24.4 percent of the total imports compared to 9.7 percent in 2001. Furthermore, the percentage of steel shipments from
China rose to over 41 percent as of the end of November.
On the other hand, imports from
Japan, South
Korea's largest source of steel from overseas, remained almost the same level in recent years.
KISA expects steel imports to reach 18.7 million tons in 2006. The increase in Chinese imports is projected to continue next year despite a high inventory level in South
Korea.