Steel consumption falls by 26 million t in China as GDP growth hits 24-year low

摘要

The latest steel consumption data in China was dramatic, but well awaited. With China’s GDP growth showing the weakest expansion in 24 years at 7.4%, steel products consumption tumbled by 25.7 million t or 3.37% comparing with 2013. Construction, accounting for more than a half of China’s steel consumption, was a headwind in 2014. Subdued by a smaller scale of construction projects and mini-stimulus package giving only a modest support to the market, the total steel use stood at 738 million t. “We didn’t see any spur in consumption nor in golden September, neither in silver October,” a seller source told Metal Expert.