Posted on 19 Dec 2022
Indonesia’s finished steel import picked up 17% y-o-y to 6.6 million tonnes in 2021. This was mainly due to the import of flat steel, which registered a double-digit growth rate of 22% y-o-y to 5.1 million tonnes. Long steel stabilized with a slight increase of 2.1% y-o-y to 1.5 million tonnes. Major destinations were Australia, Philippines and South Korea.
Finished steel export in Indonesia continued to increase around 1.6 million tonnes to 5.2 million tonnes in 2021. Flat steel export jumped from 2.9 million tonnes in 2020 to 4.3 million tonnes in 2021. This was because of the huge increase in export of hot rolled coil and cold rolled coil in 2021. Long steel export continued to surge significantly, at 67.4% y-o-y to 886,414 tonnes. This was mainly due to the huge increase in export of wire rod, which doubled in volume to 703,261 tonnes in 2021.
Malaysia’s finished steel import recovered by 10% y-o-y to 5.9 million tonnes in 2021. Both flat and long steel imports registered positive growth rates of 11% and 6%, respectively. Export jumped significantly, led by export of long products. Bar exports more than doubled in volume to 3.1 million tonnes. Wire rod export increased by a double-digit growth rate of 22% y-o-y to 2.5 million tonnes. Major destinations for both bar and wire rod export was China.
Note that Malaysia’s long products sector is in an overcapacity situation and many local mills have connections with the China, hence these mills were able to take advantage of the strong demand in China to export their wire rods and bars.
Thailand’s finished steel imports were the highest volume among the six countries in the region, at 12 million tonnes each in 2021. Thailand’s finished steel import increased 20% y-o-y to 12.1 million tonnes. Flat steel import rose by nearly 2 million tonnes to 9.9 million tonnes. Long steel import surged 11% to 2.3 million tonnes in the same period. Export increased 27.4% y-o-y to 1.2 million tonnes, owing to the huge increase in export of long steel, an increase of 41% y-o-y to 661,284 tonnes. Major destinations were ASEAN countries.
Vietnam’s finished steel import, on the other hand, contracted by 1.2 million tonnes to 12.2 million tonnes in 2021. This was due to the decline in flat steel import to 10.8 million tonnes whereas import of long steel increased slightly, at 2.3% y-o-y to 1.3 million tonnes.
Finished steel export in Vietnam jumped around 3 million tonnes to 9.7 million tonnes in 2021. It was a result of the huge increase in flat steel export, at 57% y-o-y to 7 million tonnes and the export of long steel, which surged 27% y-o-y to 2.6 million tonnes.
Philippines remained a major finished steel importer and Singapore’s relied heavily on flat steel import to serve domestic demand and to re-export.
Philippines’ finished steel import recovered 12% y-o-y to 5.6 million tonnes in 2021. Import of flat steel registered a double-digit growth rate of 17.5% to 3.5 million tonnes. Import of long steel surged slightly, by less than 70,000 tonnes to 2.1 million tonnes.
Philippines is not an export country. However, it appears a small amount of bar was exported at 10,000 tonnes in 2021.
Singapore’s finished steel import picked up slightly, at 2.5% y-o-y to 2.7 million tonnes in 2021. The recovery was due to the increase in long steel import around 200,000 tonnes to 1.5
million tonnes. Meanwhile, flat steel import registered a decline of 11% y-o-y to 1.3 million tonnes in the same period.
Finished steel export in Singapore shrank by half a million tonnes to 1 million tonnes. Both flat steel and long steel export dropped by double-digit growth rates to half a million tonnes each.
Source:SEAISI
