Recently, there has been a remarkable change in the steel foreign trade market in China: export orders are obviously picking up. From the feedback of many steel traders and manufacturers, after entering the fourth quarter, the purchasing demand from Southeast Asian markets continued to increase, pushing the domestic steel exports to maintain a growth trend for several months.
1.The acceleration of infrastructure construction in Southeast Asia has driven the expansion of regional steel demand.
Since the beginning of this year, many countries in Southeast Asia have maintained high investment in infrastructure construction. No matter the transportation projects in the Philippines, the construction of Indonesia's new capital, or the expansion of Vietnam's manufacturing industry, many varieties such as hot-rolled coil, section steel and rebar have been continuously pulled.
Some trading companies revealed that inquiries from Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand increased significantly, especially for hot coils, welded pipes, galvanized coils and other varieties.
2.The export competitiveness of China steel enterprises has been enhanced, and orders have been concentrated again.
With the change of RMB exchange rate, the increasing pressure of domestic steel mills to arrange production and the appearance of price advantage, more and more overseas buyers are turning their attention to China suppliers again.
Some long-term cooperative customers even began to lock in the supply of goods in the first quarter of next year in advance to avoid the fluctuation of international steel prices.
Insiders said, "The recovery of exports in the fourth quarter of this year is the result of three aspects: price, delivery and quality."
3.The continuous growth of export orders has brought positive signals to steel enterprises.
According to the actual statistics of several ports and shipping agents, the export shipments of steel products have increased significantly in recent months. Feedback from foreign trade departments of several steel mills,
From September to November, the export contract volume showed a steady upward trend;
The proportion of orders in Southeast Asia has further expanded;
Some high value-added products, such as cold rolling and zinc plating, have also begun to usher in increments.
This trend provides a pressure release window for domestic steel enterprises in the off-season, and also makes some enterprises more flexible in production scheduling.
4.Short-term outlook: the foreign trade market is expected to remain stable and positive
Judging from the whole industry, the demand in Southeast Asia is still recovering steadily, and the dependence on regional imports is not low, which will still support the toughness of China's steel exports in the short term. At the same time, the overhaul and production reduction of some overseas steel mills have also left a competitive space for China steel. If the international logistics remains stable and the market is not greatly disturbed, steel exports may still maintain a good level, which is expected to become one of the highlights of this year's closing stage.
