World Iron and Steel Association: the decline in global steel demand will be lower than expected this year

SMM: the (WorldSteel) of the World Iron and Steel Association said on Thursday that the decline in global steel demand caused by the COVID-19 epidemic this year will be lower than expected by 2.4% because of China's strong economic recovery.

The World Iron and Steel Association expects global steel demand to fall 2.4 per cent this year to 1.725 billion tons, less than the 6.4 per cent forecast in June, after heavy stimulus spending in China boosted steel consumption.

Global steel demand is still expected to recover next year, as the second wave of the novel coronavirus epidemic will have only a limited impact on industrial production, the association said.

EdwinBasson, director general of the World Iron and Steel Association, said: "China's economic recovery is very strong and steel demand is also very strong."

"if you look at 2020 and 2021, the global COVID-19 epidemic will have a short-lived and sharp V-shaped impact on steel demand, with most of the decline occurring in the first half of 2020."

After a decline in crude steel demand this year, the association expects global steel demand to grow 4.1 per cent to 1.795 billion tons in 2021.

The situation is uneven. Steel demand in China is expected to grow by 8 per cent this year, while steel demand in other developed economies will fall by 14.9 per cent. China accounts for 57% of global steel consumption.

Basson said that while the automotive industry has been slow to recover from the coronavirus crisis, other steel consumer industries have performed better. He added that the situation was expected to continue in the coming months as the government sought to avoid a full blockade.