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Hoa Phat Group plans to reopen the last blast furnace in the third quarter of 2023 when the market shows signs of recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic. HPG's second quarter of 2023 profit is expected to continue to increase thanks to favorable input costs.KB Securities (KBS) said that Hoa Phat Group is ready to reopen the last blast furnace at Dung Quat in the third quarter of 2023 to meet the market demand that has begun to recover.Hoa Phat Group Joint Stock Company has currently operated 6/7 steel furnaces, including: 3 BOF furnaces in Hai Duong, 3 BOF furnaces in Dung Quat and 1 EAF furnace in Hung Yen with an estimated total operating capacity of 85% of total design capacity. HPG's production output in May 2023 has reached the highest level since October 2022.Previously, the group was forced to stop operating 4 blast furnaces, including 2 blast furnaces in Hoa Phat Dung Quoc and 2 blast furnaces in Hai Duong in November 2022 in order to maintain production and business activities in the difficult context due to the pandemic. However, the enterprise does not completely close the blast furnaces, but only maintains the lowest temperature to optimize costs. Hoa Phat leaders shared, the cost to restart the blast furnace is about 30-40 billion VND/furnace.The steel market in Vietnam in particular and the world in general has shown many clear signs of recovery when consumption volume increases and steel prices are kept stable. Hoa Phat's inventory from the beginning of the year until now has also been gradually released.Excluding hot-rolled coil export orders, which increased sharply in April and May, 2023, the consumption of the whole steel industry in the first 5 months of this year remained weak. However, experts' forecasts show that consumption volume of the whole industry will recover strongly by the end of the third quarter of 2023 and the beginning of the fourth quarter of 2023, before a stronger growth in 2024.Improved steel consumption demand helps stabilize steel prices in the second half of this year and may grow from 2024. Input materials (iron ore, coke, scrap steel) plummeted, causing prices to decline. HRC steel in Vietnam also fell to the 5-year average. Currently, Vietnam has the two largest HRC factories, Hoa Phat and Pomina with a total capacity of up to 7 million tons/year, produced on the modern continuous casting production line of Danieli Group - Europe, the products all meet many strict standards such as JIS, MS, SAE, BS, EN,...For fastidious markets such as the US and EU, exported steel products must prove that their origin is not from China. Therefore, the self-reliance in the source of base steel (HRC) produced in Vietnam helps sheet steel, cold rolled coil (CRC), and pipes companies open up many export opportunities.According to experts, Hoa Phat's 7 blast furnaces have a total capacity of over 8 million tons, when reopening 7/7 blast furnaces, Hoa Phat Group's profit is expected to increase significantly, but the selling price of finished steel may slow down. Specifically, the price of raw materials (iron ore, coke, scrap steel) in the second quarter of 2023, respectively, decreased by 10%, 44% and 18% compared to the first quarter of 2023. Meanwhile, the price of construction steel and HRC in Vietnam decreased by 6% and 15% compared to the first quarter of 2023.Hoa Phat's restoration of blast furnace production in the third quarter of 2023 will help Vietnam's steel output significantly increase, meeting the consumption demand of robust importing countries such as ASEAN, the United States, Europe, and Australia. …To receive more latest news about the Vietnam steel market, please get in touch with MRS Steel via Email at vanloc@mrssteel.com.vn for thoughtful support!

Hoa Phat's steel sales set the highest level in June with the total sales volume of construction steel, hot rolled coil (HRC), and billet reaching 540,000 tons.Hoa Phat's steel sales volume hit a new peak in June 2023Construction steel sales in June reached 286,000 tons. Although the volume decreased by 18% compared to June last year, it increased slightly compared to May with construction steel sales reaching 284,000 tons. Hoa Phat's representative said that the increase in sales volume mainly came from strong consumption demand in the central and southern regions of Vietnam, in which the demand in the South increased by 69% when compared to May.Hoa Phat steel output statistics from January to June 2023The output of HRC (hot rolled coil) in June also recorded positive signals when it reached 251,000 tons and increased slightly by 3% compared to the previous month. Generally, HRC consumption volume in June reached the highest level since November 2022 and increased by 24% compared to the same period last year. Demand for input materials at steel pipe and galvanized steel pipe factories in the North and Central regions has contributed to a significant improvement in HRC output,Besides, steel pipes and galvanized steel products also showed a specific growth when both of them reached 60,000 tons and 39,000 tons. Specifically, galvanized steel products achieved a growth rate of 42% compared to June 2022.Overview of Hoa Phat’s steel sales and  production capacity in 6 months of 2023In the first 6 months of 2023, the total volumes of construction steel Hoa Phat supplied to the market reached 1.6 million tons and decreased by 30% compared to the first 6 months of 2022. Hoa Phat's HRC sales volume in 6 months including both domestic and foreign markets reached 1.2 million tons, overall HRC output decreased by 15% compared to the same period last year. Hoa Phat steel pipe and corrugated iron achieved output of 325,000 tons and 175,000 tons, down slightly compared to the first 6 months of 2022.Total steel sales of Hoa Phat in the first 6 months of 2023According to the 6-month accumulation, the total sales volume of 5 main products at Hoa Phat including construction steel, HRC and steel pipes, galvanized sheet, and steel billet reached 3.4 million tons and decreased by 25% compared to the total output in the same period last year.Regarding crude steel production capacity, Hoa Phat's total crude steel output in 6 months of 2023 reached 2.86 million tons and decreased by 34% compared to 6 months of last year (nearly 4 million tons of crude steel).Forecasting the opportunities of the Vietnam steel market at the end of 2023The situation of crude steel production in the first 6 months of 2023 is not very favorable compared to last year due to unsatisfactory consumption demand and high input material costs that have made many manufacturers forced to cut. However, crude steel consumption from January 2023 to June 2023 showed stability and showed signs of gradual recovery.Vietnam crude steel production and consumption in 6 months 2023Although there are many challenges, the construction industry is expected to revive domestic steel consumption in the second half of 2023. The Ministry of Construction recently promoted construction investments remaining in 2022 and implemented more civil house construction plans in 2021-2030. Supported decisions from the Government help domestic steel manufacturers have the opportunity to solve the problem of consumption demand.The only bright spot at the moment is the export situation of HRC with export volume in May hitting a record of more than 390,000 tons. It is estimated that HRC's export volume in the first 6 months of 2023 will reach nearly 1.7 million tons; this is a signal showing the intense competitiveness of HRC from Vietnamese steel producers compared to international competitors.The policies of construction projects in late 2023 as well as the bright spot in HRC exports have raised the expectation of a strong recovery of Vietnam's steel industry. The promotion of HRC exports has helped manufacturers deal with inventories when domestic demand is not enough and moreover, Vietnam has more foreign currency revenue to nicely balance the influence of the foreign exchange rate. 

According to the General Department of Vietnam Customs report, thanks to the trade promotion activities, the import and export turnover in May 2023 was estimated at 55.86 billion USD, up 5.3% compared to the previous month. The export of iron & steel reached 1.13 million tons, and the import of iron & steel of all kinds in May 2023 reached more than 838,000 tons.1. General assessment of Vietnam's import and export situation in May 2023According to preliminary data in May 2023 from the General Department of Customs, the country's total import and export value reached 54.08 billion USD, up 1.9% (equivalent to 1 billion USD) compared to the previous month. Export value was 28.04 billion USD, up 0.6% (equivalent to 176 million USD) and import value was 26.04 billion USD, up 3.3%.Regarding the export market, the United States is still Vietnam's largest partner with an estimated turnover of 37.2 billion USD. China is the largest import market of our country with an estimated turnover of 43.4 billion USD. In the first 5 months of 2023, Vietnam's trade surplus to the US was estimated at 31.2 billion USD; to the EU was 12.6 billion USD; to Japan was 521 million USD.2. The situation of Vietnam's steel exports in May 2023Merchandise exports in May 2023 reached 28.04 billion USD, up 0.6% (equivalent to 176 million USD) over the previous month. The commodity groups with the most substantial increase in value were textiles and garments with an increase of 376 million USD, vegetables and fruits by 265 million USD, iron & steel of all kinds with an increase of 118 USD, crude oil by 98 million USD, compared to the previous month.Iron & steel exports of all kinds in May 2023 reached 1.13 million tons, bringing the total export volume of this commodity in the first 5 months of 2023 to 4.38 million tons, up 10.4% over the same period last year. The main reason is that the import demand of the EU market increased by 55% and reached 1.36 million tons. Among 27 European countries, Italy is the largest importer of Vietnamese steel with nearly 696,000 tons, up 121% over the same period last year.According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Vietnam's future steel exports to the EU market will have many advantages thanks to changes in trade remedy policies for some steel products imported from developing countries in the WTO. According to the new regulations, valid from July 1, 2023, Vietnam benefits significantly from this quota expansion.Vietnam's most prominent steel export market is the ASEAN region with about 36% market share. In the first 5 months of 2023, the amount of iron & steel exported to the ASEAN market was 1.53 million tons.3. Vietnam's steel import situation in May 2023According to the General Department of Customs, the import value of goods in May 2023 reached 26.04 billion USD, up 3.3% (equivalent to 827 million USD) over the previous month. In the group of raw materials with increased the most such as crude oil increased by 40.1%, gasoline of all kinds increased by 20.8%, and coal of all kinds increased by 14%. Meanwhile, the commodity groups with a sharp decrease were iron & steel scrap, down 53.1% (equivalent to 137 million USD), and iron and steel and products down 7.4% (equivalent to 95 million USD).Iron & steel imports of all kinds in May 2023 reached more than 838,000 tons, down 18.9% over the previous month, worth 772 million USD, down 13.5%. Thus, in the first 5 months of 2023, Vietnam imported 4.61 million tons of iron & steel of all kinds, reaching 3.16 billion USD, down 29.7% in value over the same period last year.Currently, Vietnam mainly imports iron & steel products of all kinds from main markets including China with 2.49 million tons, up 14.5%, Japan with 737,000 tons, down 15.3%, Korea reached 409,000 tons, down 27.2%...compared to the same period in 2022.4. MRS Steel provides prestigious Vietnamese steel import solutionsMRS Steel is one of the units sourcing and supporting the export of Vietnamese steel to the markets of ASEAN, Europe, the United States, the UK, India, Turkey,... With many years of experience in the field of supplying cheap and quality steel from Vietnam's largest steel corporations such as Hoa Phat Group, Hoa Sen Group, Ton Nam Kim, Ton Dong A,... MRS Steel is proud to be a reliable partner for importers all around the world.When buying domestic products, international customers often face language, market, customs policy, and duty rate difficulties. In addition to acting as an intermediary to help importers connect with Vietnamese manufacturers, MRS Steel also supports procedures, delivery processes, customs clearance, the commitment that goods are imported on time, and your request.Facing the continuous changes in the world economy, updating the latest steel import and export data will help importers have more data and bases to make the best purchasing decisions. For any questions and contact to buy Vietnamese steel, please contact MRS Steel via Whatsapp: +84 76 911 2358

According to the latest iron and steel market report, steel sales volume in May reached more than 2.3 million tons, up about 13.6% month over month and on par with the same period in 2022. This is the best result from the beginning of the year so far, and the steel industry is expected to recover in the fourth quarter of 2023.Demand for steel market is still weakAfter a period of consecutive price increases, the world steel market tends to slow down and pause at 113.37 USD/ton, a slight increase of about 0.71%. Global steel demand has the potential to start recovering in 2023 after falling 3.2% in 2022. Accordingly, two regions, including East Asia and Southeast Asia, will contribute most of the growth in demand in 2023.In the first half of 2023, the iron ore market recorded many fluctuations when it sometimes reached 130 USD/ton, thanks to the recovery of China - the world's No. 1 steel market. However, iron ore prices then fell again due to slower global economic growth.The iron and steel market slowed down because the Chinese government's economic recovery stimulus policies were not strong enough. Especially in the real estate sector, which consumes a lot of iron and steel and is the driving force for the economic development of this country.Similarly, the North American market, the region that consumes about 7.5% of global steel production, is also facing high-interest rate pressure, bringing the risk of recession. In the European market, which currently accounts for more than 8% of steel consumption, after raising interest rates in June 2023, steel demand in this region is expected to decrease by about 1% in 2023 before recovering by about 5.4% by 2024.The steel market rises up against difficulties and challengesIn 2022, Vietnam will be the 13th largest steel exporter in the world, accounting for 3.4% of the global market share, and it will also be the 12th largest steel importer in the world, accounting for 5.5% of the world's total. This contributes to affirming the position of Vietnam's steel industry in the world steel market. The low iron and steel prices will benefit the imports of Vietnamese enterprises. In the first 5 months of the year, the whole country imported about 4.6 million tons of iron and steel, down about 12.4% in volume and nearly 30% in turnover due to the much lower iron and steel prices. In contrast, Vietnam exported nearly 4.3 million tons of iron and steel, up 10% over the same period last year.The domestic steel market weakened, forcing factories to reduce prices to increase competitiveness and boost consumption. In the first 5 months of the year, nationwide steel production reached more than 11 million tons, down 22% compared to last year. Steel products sold reached 10.4 million tons, down 19.3%; exports reached more than 3.1 million tons, up 2.6%.With the above signs, it can be seen that the steel market is moving in a positive direction. Difficulties will ease at the end of the year, especially in the fourth quarter of 2023, because this is the period of high demand when the works are accelerated. Besides, public investment will continue to support domestic steel demand.

The European Union (EU) has issued Regulation (EU) 2023/1301, amending Regulation (EU) 2019/159 on the application of safeguard measures to some imported steel products. The European Commission does not extend the safeguard duty for an additional year unless the EU’s steel producers can demonstrate injury from imported goods.1. EU: extension of safeguard measures against imported steel in the form of TRQOn June 2, 2023, the Committee on Safeguards of the World Trade Organization (WTO) announced that the European Union (EU) continued to extend its safeguard measure against imported steel under the form of tariff rate quota (TRQ) for some imported steel products for an additional year. The decision has been valid from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024.The reason for the extension is that the domestic steel industry of Europe can suffer significantly from the dumping and export of cheap steel by foreigners. The EC continues to maintain its defense by allocating quotas that are mixed between the way of allocating separate quotas for each country and general quota allocations to the remaining countries. The out-of-quota tariff is 25%. The amount of non-taxable quotas continued to increase by 4% compared to the period from July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2023.Vietnam is subject to a standard quota on a quarterly basis for 8 product groups, including:Group 1: hot rolled steel plateGroup 3B: electrical engineering steel plateGroups 4A, 4B: galvanized steel plateGroup 5: organic coated steel sheetGroup 9: stainless cold rolled steel plateGroup 25B: large steel pipesGroup 26: other steel pipesFor other groups of steel products, Vietnam is exempted from safeguard measures according to the criterion set for a developing country whose import turnover is less than 3%. In case the market share of importing another group of steel products from Vietnam into the EU exceeds 3%, this group will be included in the list of applying TRQ during the annual administrative reviews.2. EU: amending the application of safeguard measures to some imported steelsAfter listening to the recommendations from the relevant countries during the period from 5/6/2023 to 13/6/2023 along with the assessment of whether to terminate the safeguard measure early before June 2023 based on the general import export data in 2022, the EU has issued a new revised regulation effective from 1/7/2023.Under the revised rules, all tariff rate quotas (TRQs) of the safeguard measure will continue to increase by 4% from 1 July 2023. Any member of the WTO that is a developing country is exempted from safeguard duty in case that country's exports to the EU are less than 3% of its total imports for each product category. Vietnam is further applied to category 26 and removed category 3A compared to the old scope.If the aggregate share of imports from developing countries (with individual shares below 3%) exceeds 9% in a specific category, they will be subject to the same measure in that product category.According to the above Regulation, the countries benefiting from the quota expansion by country include Vietnam, Turkey, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Moldova, North Macedonia, Oman, and South Fly.3. Vietnamese steel exports to the EU marketAccording to the latest report on Vietnam's steel market situation of the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA), the total production of the hot rolled coil in 2022 reached 6.04 million tons. Which, exports reached 1.3 million tons, up 0.9% over the same period in 2021.Galvanized sheet production in 2022 reached 4.56 million tons, down 23.4% over the same period in 2021, of which exports reached 2.086 million tons, down 38.1% over the same period in 2021. Steel pipe is one of the leading export products. According to VSA's record, the production output in 2022 reached more than 2.065 million tons, of which the export volume reached 258,873 tons, up 9.1% over the same period in 2021.With increasingly improved production capacity, and strong investment in technology lines, Vietnamese steel is capable of meeting international standards and customer requirements. The advantages of membership in the WTO and the signing of the EVFTA Agreements help Vietnam open up many opportunities to export steel to international markets in general and Europe in particular.Amendments in Regulation (EU) 2019/159 of the European Union positively impact Vietnam's steel industry. As a result, customers can import cheap, high-quality steel and enjoy many tax incentives.