Chinese Billet Imports Rise Seven Folds in Q1 CY20

China’s billet imports stood at 1.7 MnT during Q1 CY20, registering a sharp growth on a Y-o-Y basis. The same was recorded at 245,152 MT during Q1 CY19, as per customs data maintained with SteelMint.

Vietnam, Iran, Russia, United Arab Emirates, and Malaysia were noted to be the major suppliers with 378,216 MT, 285,683 MT, 216,289 MT, 167,502 MT, and 158,650 MT respectively. Billet imports from India were recorded at around 56,226 MT in Q1 CY20 which was nil in the same quarter last year.

During analysis, SteelMint observed, the above-mentioned nations were not the primary exporters to China during Q1 CY19. Amid improved Chinese buying and sluggish domestic demand in exporting countries, these nations turned on their interest in exports. The sluggish demand was largely due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Chinese mills finding imported billet cost-effective shifted their interest towards imports. Domestic Chinese billet was comparatively expensive amid supply tightness, which supported imports. And on the contrary, China is the only economy that has recovered from the pandemic. And thus, all the billet exporting nations are now largely dependent on China for trades.

Below table shows the country-wise imports in China

Source: SteelMint Research