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Try the Free AI Search EngineAsia Steel Market: KISCO Surge Offsets Weaker China Activity Amidst US Policy Uncertainty
Asia’s steel market presents a mixed picture. While activity at some plants has recently surged, broader uncertainty stems from shifting US energy and tax policies potentially impacting global trade flows. Fluctuations in plant activity levels do not appear to have a direct correlation to the themes covered in articles such as “US Senate votes to soften clean energy tax cuts: Update“, “Die ökonomischen Folgen von Trumps Steuerplänen“, and “US Senate votes to pass tax, energy bill“.
Asia Steel Plant Activity
The average steel plant activity in Asia peaked in May 2025 at 43% and then sharply declined to just 2% in July.
Laiwu Iron and Steel Group Yinshan Section Steel Co., Ltd. consistently showed high activity, fluctuating between 78% and 81% from January to June.
KISCO steel Changwon plant experienced a significant surge in activity, jumping from 27% in May to 55% in June and further to 78% in July.
Heyuan Derun Steel Co., Ltd. exhibited a gradual decrease in activity from 36% in January to 30% in June.
Plant Information
Laiwu Iron and Steel Group Yinshan Section Steel Co., Ltd., located in Shandong, China, is an integrated steel plant with a crude steel capacity of 5.4 million tonnes using the BOF process. Activity at this plant remained consistently high throughout the observed period, ranging between 78% and 81%. This steady output suggests stable production levels, but no direct connection to specific news articles could be established.
KISCO steel Changwon plant, situated in South Gyeongsang, Republic of Korea, is an electric arc furnace (EAF) based steel plant with a crude steel capacity of 3 million tonnes. The plant produces rebar, forging, and billet. A notable increase in activity from 27% in May to 78% in July suggests a significant ramp-up in production. No direct link could be established between this production increase and the provided news articles.
Heyuan Derun Steel Co., Ltd., located in Guangdong, China, is an EAF-based steel plant with a crude steel capacity of 1.2 million tonnes. It produces hot-rolled rebar and billet. The activity at this plant gradually decreased from 36% in January to 30% in June. The decline is not directly attributable to any of the provided news articles.
Evaluated Market Implications
The sharp decrease in average steel plant activity in Asia in July is primarily driven by the missing activity data of “Laiwu Iron and Steel Group Yinshan Section Steel Co., Ltd. “. As this plant accounts for 44% of the Asia’s three plant production capacity, and has shown stable production levels of around 80% until June 2025, supply disruptions may occur.
The surge in activity at KISCO steel Changwon plant partially offsets this potential disruption, but it is unlikely to completely compensate for the drop. Steel buyers should closely monitor the production levels of Laiwu Iron and Steel Group Yinshan Section Steel Co., Ltd. in the coming weeks.
Steel analysts should revise supply forecasts and consider potential price volatility as the overall market impact unfolds.