South Korea: Heavy plate imports rise sharply in Q1CY'22 on higher shipbuilding demand

South Korea's imports of heavy plates stood at 0.40 million tonnes (mnt) in Q1CY'22 as against 0.12 mnt in the same period last year. The increase in volumes is majorly due to the low base effect. Almost 70% of imports were shipped from Japan at 0.27 mnt - an increase of 245.9% compared with the same period of the previous year.

In Mar'22, import volumes rose to 0.15 mnt in comparison with 0.05 mnt in Mar'21. On a monthly basis, imports jumped 15% compared to 0.12 mnt in Feb.

Exports rise in Q1

In Q1CY'22, South Korean mills exported 0.35 mnt, up 1% compared with 0.34 mnt in the corresponding period last year.

Market participants anticipate that the growth in exports is limited due to increased consumption from the domestic shipbuilding sector.

In March, heavy plate exports were recorded at 0.114 mnt, up 21% as against 0.09 mnt in Mar'21. However, exports dropped 4% against 0.119 mnt in Feb.

Outlook

Demand from the domestic downstream sector such as shipbuilding is likely to grow in the near term. Hence, it is expected that exports of heavy plates will continue to grow at a slower pace compared with imports.

Note: This article has been published in accordance with an article exchange agreement between SteelMint and SteelDaily.