ASEAN finished steel imports rise 7% y-o-y in H1CY'21

Finished steel imports of the ASEAN countries were recorded at 25.2 million tonnes (mn t) in the Jan-Jun'21 period (H1CY'21), according to latest data released by the South East Asia Steel Association. Import volumes increased by 6.8% compared to H1CY'20.

Product-wise finished steel imports

Imports of long products of ASEAN countries decreased by 8% to 6.1 mn t in H1CY'21. However, wire rod imports increased by 16% y-o-y.

In terms of flat steel products, ASEAN imported 8.3 mn t of hot-rolled coils (HRCs) in the first half of CY'21, up 9.4% y-o-y. China was the largest importer of HRCs with 2.9 mn t in H1CY'21 as compared to 1.3 mn t in the same period last year.

Imports of cold-rolled coils (CRCs) increased by 21.4% y-o-y to 2.8 mn t in the period under consideration. Japan was the largest importer of CRCs with 1.1 mn t followed by China with 604,000 t, up 34% y-o-y.

Galvanised steel sheets imports of the ASEAN nations were recorded at 2.8 mn t, up 18.3% y-o-y, with China exporting about 50% of the total volume of galvanised products.

Product-wise finished steel exports

Long steel exports from ASEAN increased by 15.5% y-o-y to 6.2 mn t in the first half of CY'21, of which rebar exports were at 3.5 mn t. Malaysia was the largest rebar exporter, accounting for about 80% of the total exports in the period under review.

In terms of flat steel, ASEAN recorded 5.3 mn t of steel sheets exports, an increase of 26.7% y-o-y. Among them, HRC exports were at 1.7 mn t, increasing by 38% y-o-y.