China's March semi-finished steel imports rise 26% on year

摘要

China's semi-finished steel imports were 26% higher year on year in March, but down 12% from February and 79% lower than the August 2020 peak. Imports may pick up in April, but the increase is unlikely to sustain amid rising domestic steel supply and soaring global prices. S&P Global Platts Analytics continues to forecast that China's overall finished and semi-finished steel imports in 2021 will decline from the 38.45 million mt in 2020, partly due to unsustainable import growth and partly to the high import base in the second half of 2020.