Because of the slowdown of real estate and less investment in infrastructure construction, China’s steel and iron demand will show a slight growth in 2015. According to the report by China Metallurgical Industry Planning and Research Institute, China needs 720 tons of refined steel products and 834 million tons of crude steel in 2015.
The increasing demand is due to government measures including cuts to the lending and deposit rates to maintain economic growth. 395 million tons of steel products will be used in construction sector next year. China will import around 1 billion tons of iron ore next year after importing 940 million tons this year.
Though China’s increasing need for steel, weak demand of iron ore drove the prices down this year. The price of iron ore is almost half of the peak of US$ 134.5 per ton seen at the beginning of the year. The price will linger around US$ 70 per ton next year and will not be lower than US$ 60 per ton, said the institute's head.
