Chinese steel exports to hit new record in 2014

MEPS International experts have revised upwards the previous forecast for the volume of exports of finished steel products in 2014. They concluded that the final figure would be a new record of at least 80 million tonnes. This is the fifth consecutive year that China has seen an increase in global sales.

The total reported crude steel output is expected to rise from 783.5 million tonnes in 2013 to 810 million tonnes this year. This will translate into 24 million tonnes of additional sales of finished steel products from steel producers in 2014. Only 27 percent of that volume (6.5 million tons) will go to the domestic market this year, while China will export 73 percent of its increased steel production.

It is clear that by concentrating their efforts on export sales, Chinese metallurgists have eased some of the pressure created by the oversupply of steel products in the domestic market. However, this did not lead to the desired result, as weakening demand has reduced average prices for steel products by 5 percent YTD.

At the same time, competitive prices for export supplies of steel from China contributed to the decline in domestic prices in many other regions of the world, as repeatedly stated by metallurgists from the USA, South Korea and Japan. However, China continues to conquer the world market, despite the imposed duties on its products.