Korean steel scrap exports take big leap in November

SEOUL (Scrap Monster): The latest statistics released by the Korean Customs and Trade Development Institution indicate that the country’s ferrous scrap exports increased considerably during November 2016, upon comparison with the prior month. Also, cumulative scrap exports by the country during the initial eleven-month period of the year were up significantly by over 24% when matched with the corresponding period in 2015.

Scrap Exports-Nov ‘16

The Korean scrap exports touched the highest volume in seven months. The highest monthly export volume so far in 2016 was recorded in April when the country’s scrap exports had touched nearly 70,000 tons. The exports by the country totaled 59,016 tons in November 2016, significantly higher by 66.6% when matched with the month prior to that. The Korean steel scrap exports had totaled 35,424 tons during October 2015. When compared with the year-ago period, the Nov ’16 scrap exports by the country were up by 84%. It must be noted that the exports had totaled 32,074 tons during November 2015.

The January-November 2016 cumulative scrap exports by the country totaled 477,463 tons, rising significantly by over 24% when matched with the corresponding eleven-month period in 2015. The monthly exports averaged at 43,400 tons. The exports during the entire year 2016 are expected to cross half-a-million tons.

Scrap Exports-Oct ‘16

South Korea exported 35,424 tons of scrap steel during the month of October this year. The exports were up significantly by nearly 65% when matched with the previous month. The country’s exports had totaled 21,531 tons of scrap steel during September 2016. The exports have registered month-on-month rise, after reporting declines during the previous two months.

The biggest importer of ferrous scrap from South Korea during October this year was China. The imports by China from South Korea totaled 13,502 tons, accounting for more than 38% of the total scrap exports by South Korea during the month. The imports from South Korea were up by almost one-third from September ’16. Vietnam was the second largest importer during the month, with 9,179 tons. The ferrous scrap exports to Vietnam from South Korea surged higher multiple-folds over the previous month. In third place was India with 5,860 tons. The other key importers of ferrous scrap from South Korea during the month were Japan (3,925 tons), Taiwan (1,460 tons), Thailand (772 tons) and Pakistan (590 tons).

Scrap Exports-Sep ‘16

The ferrous scrap exports totaled 21,531 tons during the month of September last year. Year-on-year, the exports declined by over 26%. When compared with exports during Aug ’16, the exports in September were down considerably by nearly 35%. High domestic scrap prices led to few export contracts by the country. The key importer of Korean scrap during the month was China. The imports by China have dropped by 7.9% over the previous year to total around 10,000 tons. The exports to India too declined sharply by 52.6% to nearly 5,000 tons during September last year.

The table below provides the summary of South Korea’s ferrous scrap exports during the year-to-date period.