China: Ferro Chrome Imports Reduced by 8% in CY 18
...
In CY 18 the imports of Ferro Chrome in China reduced by 8% from the previous year. The import volume for CY18 remained 2.53MnT. Meanwhile, in Dec'18 imports were down by 4.80% M-o-M and down by 13% Y-o-Y. In Dec'18 the imports were 206,800MT. The import volume reduced in CY 18 mainly due to the release of new domestic HC Ferro Chrome capacity. However, the weakened market alongside limited demand for downstream stainless steel market is also one of the major reasons for lowered import value.
According to Customs data, in Dec'18 Imports of South African HC Ferro Chrome increased by 74% M-o-M to 129,000MT. Meanwhile, the total imports from South Africa in CY 18 was 1.17 MnT which accounted for 46.24% of the total imports by China in CY 18. South African exports made a major shift to the Indonesian markets due to their increased stainless steel output. Due to this a significant drop of 21% Y-o-Y was noticed in CY 18. Kazakhstan being the second largest exporter of HC Ferro Chrome for China contributed to 21% of the total imports in China. Import volume from Kazakhstan increased by 85% M-o-M to 45,800MT in Dec'18. Meanwhile, in CY 18 the import volume inched down by 7% Y-o-Y with the total quantity of 520,900MT. India stood as the third largest exporter of Ferro Chrome for China with import quantity of 24,200 MT in Dec'18 which was 77% higher than that of the previous month. The total imports from India in CY 18 were 222,700MT which accounted for 9% of the total imports and were down by 34% Y-o-Y. Meanwhile, Oman, Zimbabwe, and other origins accounted for 1%, 3%, and 20% respectively.
In the future outlook, it is expected that the capacity expansion of HC Ferro Chrome in 2019 may slow down. In 2018, the newly added capacity was 600,000 MT and the output was increased to 5.27MnT which accounted for 6.84% growth Y-o-Y. However, in 2019, it is estimated to rise by 4.21% and the year-round output is expected to be 5.53MnT. Considering the use of a certain amount of waste stainless steel, it is expected that HC Ferro-Chrome in CY 19 may face oversupply, and imports of HC Ferro-Chrome may decline slightly.
