[SMM Steel] Exorbitant Tariffs Drive Up Import Costs; Bullish Sentiment Dominates European HRC Market

Wang Jun, spokesperson and deputy head of the General Administration of Customs (GAC), said at a State Council Information Office press conference that in the first three quarters, China's ship exports exceeded 350 billion yuan, up 24.6%. Among them, 300,000 mt-class oil tankers, large liquefied petroleum gas carriers, and liquefied natural gas carriers all achieved exponential growth. Green fuel ship types such as methanol and ammonia continued to be iterated and upgraded, fueling and powering global energy transportation. The industrial robot industry accelerated digital and intelligent empowerment, with exports approaching 10 billion yuan, up 16.9%, helping trading partners transform and upgrade their manufacturing industries. Electronic component exports grew 70%, and electrical equipment such as wires and cables grew 25.3%, strengthening the core and connecting the veins for the development of global AI computing power and power infrastructure. Amid instability in the Middle East and tight global supply of energy and chemical raw materials, China's exports of basic organic chemicals grew 24.4% in the first three quarters, and plastics in primary forms grew 32.2%, supplying and fueling production for various countries.

According to data from the General Administration of Customs, China's integrated circuit exports in September reached $44.951 billion, up 136% YoY; automobile exports reached $20.75 billion, up 62% YoY; rare earth exports reached $68.094 million, up 14.3% YoY; and mobile phone exports reached $16.982 billion, up 14.2% YoY.