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| HOME >> Topics List >> January, 2010 >> 18 (Mon) |
| Active Demand For Sheet Piles, Shapes In China, SE Asia, Middle East |
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There are signs of local demand perking up for sheet piles and shapes such as H-beams in China, Southeast Asia and the Middle East, which has brought a price increase of US$50/ton for sheet piles and that of US$50-60/ton for H-beams in what Japan's integrated steelmakers negotiate in their export deals for February shipments to the three destinations. For their part, the Japanese steelmakers are contemplating seeking a larger price increase in their export deals of shapes for March shipments. Japanese sheet pile exports Sheet pile exports out of Japan to China slowed down in October and November last year when they fell short of 10,000 tpm, compared with the earlier level of 10,000 tpm or beyond. But Japanese export deals of sheet piles this year have recovered to a level of 10,000 tpm for shipments to China, which attests an upswing in China's sheet pile demand for civil engineering. China's sheet pile imports are usually sourced from Japan and South Korea. But it is uncertain whether South Korea's steelmakers have sufficient export capacity for sheet piles because the South Korean government's public works projects require sheet pile supplies in large quantities. As a result, Japanese sheet pile exports to China are on track to increase markedly. They could have hit a total of 100,000 tons in calendar 2009 after a cumulative 88,000 tons in the January-November period. They totaled 26,000 tons in calendar 2008. SE Asian demand for shapes In Southeast Asia, local demand for shapes is expected to increase in relation to infrastructure maintenance and improvement projects. So far, sheet pile demand has arisen ahead of shape demand. Cases in point are deals to provide sheet piles for Singapore and Vietnam. Required amounts are 150,000 tons to be used civil engineering for an expressway in Singapore and 20,000-30,000 tons for bridge construction in Vietnam. Middle Eastern demand for H-beams In the Middle East, local demand for H-beams indicates a marked growth. As a matter of fact, the Japanese steelmakers see a surge of Middle Eastern inquiries for H-beams and built H-beams that apply to steel frames in construction of gas plants. In this connection, South Korea's Hyundai Steel Co is expected to offer its new H-beam exports at an increased price level of US$700/ton C&F. |
| last modified : Thu 21 Jan, 2010 [10:29] |
