World Steel Association Sees Growth Tapering After 2017

22 May 2017

The World Steel Association sees global steel output tapering next year, and the slowdown should continue through 2035 as countries around the world start to rein in output while demand will also retreat.

Data released by the World Steel Association showed that global steel output in the first quarter of 2017 increased 5.7% to 410.5 million tons with India leading the way in output growth while American steel production also increased after contracting for multiple quarters.

The industry body estimates that steel production in China rose 4.6% year-on-year, but was fairly flat on a month-on-month basis. Data released from China on Monday showed that its April steel output climbed again. According to the National Statistics Bureau, Chinese steelmakers produced a record 72.78 million tons in April, just topping March’s monthly record of 72 million tons. Like in the US, these duties could boost domestic steel production.

The WSA said the largest increase in output came from India, where a 10.7% year-on-year growth to 25.8 million tons was experienced. US output rose by 3.8% year-on-year while quarterly growth in Europe was also 3.8% after approximately 7% growth in March. Meanwhile, on Monday the European Commission announced new anti-dumping duties on pipes and tubes made from steel and iron in China. Duties of 29% to 55% were imposed after an investigation found that Chinese firms were dumping steel into Europe at unusually low prices.

The WSA has a positive outlook on the steel market through 2017 but then sees growth retreating. Its Director General Edwin Basson said global installed steel capacity of roughly 2.4 billion tons “is already enough to meet supply requirements through 2035.” He noted that strong steel demand growth in developing countries will offset stabilizing demand in developed countries to result in flat overall global demand for the next two decades or more. “We believe that steel demand, in terms of volume, has reached an important inflection point,” he added.

Source: Economic Calender