Chinese export markets have turned quiet with growing rumours of an investigation into exports which evade VAT. Competitive Chinese steel exports have grown in volume aggressively in global markets, with traders able to undercut official steel mill offers significantly.

If there is a crackdown on VAT evasion, what will the …

Kallanish held its Asia Steel Markets 2024 conference in Ho Chi Minh City on 27-28 March. Confidence in markets this year was not strong, but participants also highlighted opportunities in the significant structural changes coming to the sector in the next decades.

In the short term, changing trade flows, tax …

China’s policy settings for 2024, released in the Government Work Report on 5 March, disappointed markets. Although the government will continue to expand fiscal support for the economy, targets were viewed as too conservative to engineer a strong rebound, especially for traditional steel-intensive sectors. This suggests that China will not …

How have markets been impacted? And can this practice continue through 2024?

China’s full year trade data confirmed the significant increase in net steel exports which has pressured markets in the rest of the world. The shifting trade balance is fundamentally the product of China’s weaker economy last year. Domestic …