TAIPEI (TVBS News) — A China Steel Corp. (CSC, 中鋼) senior management on Friday (Feb. 7) described the steel market as entering a "warm-up phase," with a significant improvement expected by the end of the first quarter this year.
Li Jia-cheng (李家丞), CSC business department vice president, shared that the World Steel Association (世界鋼鐵協會) forecasts a global steel demand increase of 20.6 million tons this year, reaching 1.772 billion tons in total. He analyzed the demand, noting that the market remains cautious due to the current off-season and Donald Trump's return as U.S. president.
Li anticipated that demand would increase in the second quarter as Trump's policies become clearer, ushering in a peak season. He emphasized that the main markets for steel products are in the Northern Hemisphere, where construction activity resumes in spring, boosting demand across North America, Europe, and China.
Regarding China Steel's first-quarter shipment targets, Li reported that January's target was 820,000 tons, with actual shipments reaching 822,000 tons. February's estimate is 800,000 tons, but he expects actual shipments to exceed this figure, with March yet to be determined. On the refined steel target for this year, Li stated, "Last year's sales volume target proportion was 9.5%, and the actual volume was 11.1%; this year's target will reach 12%."
Despite the challenges in producing refined steel due to its high technical content, Li sees applications in various industries, including fasteners, electric vehicles, and super-tall building structural steel. As China's annual "Two Sessions" open in March, further stimulus for steel demand is anticipated, potentially driving market activity.