Southeast Asian Iron and Steel Association: increasing steel exports in ASEAN region

SMM10, March 28: a few days ago, the Southeast Asian Iron and Steel Association ((SEAlSl)) issued a statement saying that the ASEAN region once imported 50 million tons of finished steel a year, while steel exports were as low as 7 to 8 million tons per year; however, according to an analyst, finished steel exports in the region doubled to 15 million tons in 2019. Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia are the emerging major exporters of finished steel in the ASEAN region.

Vietnam and Indonesia focus on flat steel exports, while Malaysia is an emerging exporter of long steel, especially wire rods and bars. The main markets for flat steel exports are the six ASEAN countries, China and Taiwan. Other emerging markets for flat steel exports include Pakistan, Myanmar and India. Cambodia and Myanmar are the largest markets for bars and wire rods, especially for exports from Vietnam and Malaysia.

With the exception of the six ASEAN countries, Bangladesh and Kuwait appear to be the main markets for long-term exports in the region. China has become the main market for semi-finished steel and long materials of the six ASEAN countries.