Steel exports from China rebounded in March to the highest level this year, underscoring the competitive threat facing global producers still reeling from last year’s record surge in shipments and slump in prices.
Shipments expanded to 9.98 million metric tons, up 30 percent on-year and higher than the 8.11 million tons in February, according to data from the customs administration on Wednesday. The March figure takes exports for the quarter to 27.83 million tons, about 8 percent more than a year earlier.
Facing a glut of metal at home, Chinese mills have boosted exports to unprecedented levels, triggering a crisis for steelmakers outside the largest producer. The resurgence in March, part of a broader rebound in China’s exports over the month, is more bad news for steelmakers from Australia to the U. K., where the battle against the deluge of Chinese metal has claimed high-profile victims including Sydney-based Arrium Ltd., and cast doubt on the future of Tata Steel Ltd.’s U. K. operations.
This post was published at David Stockmans Contra Corner by Bloomberg Business ‘ April 15, 2016.
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