According to data from the General Administration of Customs, China’s steel exports have exceeded 100 million tons in 2024, and the proportion of exports in China’s steel sales structure has significantly increased. However, due to the impact of tariffs, some experts predict that China’s direct steel exports may fall below 70 million tons this year.
The United States never shows mercy to its opponents or allies. At the beginning of this year, the US government blocked Japan Railways’ acquisition of Amtrak in the name of national security, causing a huge uproar in the industry.
As the fourth largest steel company in the world, Nippon Steel proposed the “Billion Ton Capacity Vision” in 2021, planning to achieve crude steel production capacity exceeding 100 million tons through overseas acquisitions. And the US steel company has a production capacity of about 22.4 million tons. If the acquisition is successful, Japan’s iron production capacity will jump to the third place in the world, second only to China’s Baowu Group.
However, the United States has turned its back and its resolute attitude towards vetoing the acquisition case reflects the awkward and difficult to bridge “temperature difference” between the Japanese and American governments on industrial cooperation issues.
Whether it is the tariff war or the failure of the acquisition case, it reflects that the steel industry is facing a paradigm shift – the global steel industry is undergoing accelerated integration, technological route transformation, and supply chain restructuring.
As the world’s largest steel producer, China faces multiple challenges such as overcapacity, environmental pressure, technological upgrading, and intensified international competition. At the same time, developed countries such as Europe, America, and Japan are repositioning their steel industries through industrial integration, technological innovation, and green transformation.
The above major changes are intertwined and are reshaping the competitive landscape and development path of the global steel market, which will have a profound impact on the future development of China’s steel industry.
Post time: Jun-04-2025