According to the Vietnam Steel Association, in October this year Vietnam’s steel production totaled 2.14 million mt, up 8.42 percent compared to September, but it was 3.5 percent below the result of the same month last year. In September, output went down by five percent month on month and the recovery of production was expected in October as traditionally steel demand is on the rise starting from the October-November period.
However, consumption of construction steel products declined in October as the downtrend, which prevailed in the market during the month made end-users more cautious in their purchases. Total steel sales of Vietnamese market participants increased by a small margin of 2.95 percent compared to September, reaching 1.86 million mt, while in the year-on-year comparison the figure lost 3.3 percent. Not only local sales have been insufficient, but steel exports dropped 5.91 percent month on month and 22 percent year on year to 343,154 mt, according to the Vietnam Steel Association.
