Posted on 24 Jan 2025
Carbon steel sales of China Steel Corp (CSC), Taiwan's top integrated steel producer headquartered in South Taiwan's Kaohsiung, fell by 163,704 tonnes or 2.1% during 2024 to reach 7.59 million tonnes, according to the company's latest release on its website.
With the on-year decline in carbon steel sales, the steel giant's total pre-tax profits for full-year 2024 came in at TWD 4.58 billion ($139 million), slipping by TWD 12.5 million or 0.3% from the previous year, the release showed.
For December alone, the company's carbon steel sales registered 594,008 tonnes, down by 9,089 tonnes or 1.5% from November, while its pre-tax profits for the month rose substantially to TWD 698 million, as against November's TWD 130 million, according to CSC's release.
The results suggested that steel demand from local and overseas buyers was weak overall in 2024, reflecting continued geopolitical conflicts and global inflation, Mysteel Global learned.
However, the company is optimistic about the steel market this year, as it believes steel demand will recover, firstly because Taiwan's local economy will perform strongly and secondly because the global economy will likely show a steady uptick.
For 2025, the world's economic growth rate will rise further to 3.3%, CSC said, quoting the latest forecast of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development in December.
Besides, the central government on the Chinese mainland has decided to take more effective measures to stabilize economic growth this year, such as intensifying monetary policy regulation and further promoting large-scale equipment upgrades and consumer goods trade-ins, which may boost steel demand.
However, the first quarter is the traditional low period for steel consumption in Taiwan due to the long holiday for Chinese New Year. In order to help its customers improve their competitiveness in the global market, CSC had earlier decided to roll over its list prices of major steel products for local sales in February, as Mysteel Global reported.
Source:Mysteel Global
