Steel demand in the MENA region (Middle East and North Africa) is expected to remain stagnant in 2011, mainly due to downward revisions from North African countries, according to "Short Range Outlook" released by the World Steel Association (worldsteel ).
According to worldsteel, apparent steel use in the MENA region this year is forecast to decrease slightly by 0.1 percent to 60.5 million metric tons, from 60,6 million metric tons in 2010.
However, boosted by high oil prices, steel use in MENA is forecast to resume growth in 2012 at a rate of 7.9 percent to 65.3 million metric tons. Given the political situation in the region, there are considerable uncertainties to the current forecasts, worldsteel said.
Particularly, apparent steel use in the Middle East is predicted to increase 2.6 percent in 2011 to 46.5 million metric tons, following a 7.2 percent growth recorded in 2010. In 2012, apparent steel use is expected to increase by a further 7.3 percent to 49.9 million metric tons.