The World Steel Association cut its forecast for global steel demand on 19 October 2022, saying demand would contract 2.3 percent to 1,796.7 million tonnes in 2022, after growing 2.8 percent in 2021. It expected a recovery of 1.0 percent to 1,814.7 million tonnes in 2023. The downgrade was a sharp reversal from the April outlook, which had forecast growth of 0.4 percent for 2022. China, the largest market, saw demand fall 6.6 percent in the first eight months of the year, and worldsteel expected a full-year fall of 4.0 percent, as the property slump and Covid controls weighed on construction. Demand in the European Union was forecast to fall 3.5 percent in 2022 as high energy prices hit manufacturers. The association said the war in Ukraine, high inflation and rising interest rates had darkened the outlook for steel users across the world.
Source: Hellenic Shipping News — https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/global-steel-demand-downgraded-to-drop-2-3-in-2022-worldsteel/
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