Posted on 08 Nov 2023
China's finished steel exports totalled 74.73 million tonnes over January-October, jumping by 34.8% on year, according to the latest data released by China's General Administration of Customs (GACC) on November 7.
During October alone, China's steel exports totalled 7.94 million tonnes, dipping by 1.5% from September but soaring by 53.1% compared with October 2022 when global steel demand was generally slack due to the pandemic, high inflation, and geopolitical conflicts.
The volume shipped overseas last month reflected a relatively active foreign order volume compared with the levels in recent years, a Shanghai-based industry watcher noted.
The shipments of Chinese steel products abroad in October were mainly fulfilling orders signed about two months earlier, Mysteel Global notes.
Around August, Chinese steel products had enjoyed a price advantage in the international steel market and accordingly, had been attractive to foreign buyers. Indeed, the price advantage was also the major factor keeping China's steel exports elevated, another Shanghai-based analyst believed.
For example, as of August 31, the export price of Chinese SS400 4.75mm hot-rolled coil (HRC) was assessed by Mysteel at $550/t FOB from North China's Tianjin port, lower by $35/t compared with Japan-origin offers posted the same day, according to Mysteel's survey.
The growth rate in export volumes during the first ten-months marked the third straight rebound since the 27.9% increase recorded during this year's first seven months, Mysteel Global observed.
Meanwhile, during the first ten-month period, China imported 6.37 million tonnes of steel products in total, dropping by 30.1% on year, according to the GACC's data.
Source:Mysteel Global
