In 2011, China's apparent steel use is expected to rise by 7.5 percent year on year to 643.2 million mt, mostly supported by growth in domestic construction projects, according to worldsteel forecasts announced at the 45th annual meeting of the World Steel Association (worldsteel) held in Paris on October 12. However, growth in China's apparent steel use is predicted to decelerate in 2012 to six percent, with apparent steel use for the year expected to total 681.6 million mt.
Assessing the situation in China, Dr. Zhang Xiaogang, president of Chinese steelmaker Ansteel and also newly-appointed chairman of worldsteel, said that, while inflation is a huge problem in China, steel prices in China do not reflect the high inflation rate.
Asked if the growth in China's steel industry is sustainable, Dr. Zhang said that China is consuming almost all the steel it produces and that inventories are low. Thus, as long as China's economic growth is sustained, its domestic steel consumption will continue to grow as well, Dr. Zhang said.
Meanwhile, Daniel Novegil, chairman of the worldsteel economics committee and CEO of Luxembourg-headquartered steelmaker Ternium, stated that China's priority in the steel industry has switched from exports to domestic consumption, adding that, while previously the growth of the Chinese steel industry had exceeded China's economic growth rate, this situation has now been reversed.