Monday, June 06, 2005
BHP Billiton sees consolidation of China's steel industry
AFP News Via Yahoo
BHP Billiton is expecting a consolidation among Chinese steel mills, with the big getting bigger and the smaller ones perhaps falling away, analysts said following briefings by the diversified mining giant.
UBS resources analyst Glyn Lawcock said BHP indicated in briefings to the analysts at its eastern Australia mine sites that it saw steel production growth coming primarily from China, Russia, India and Brazil.
While China and Russia are most likely to remain self-sufficient to a large degree for coking coal, BHP believes India and Brazil's steel production are likely to be met almost entirely through imported coking coal, he said.
All four countries are also opting for blast furnace operations rather than electric arc furnaces due to the poor availability of scrap and the desire to build large-scale facilities.
BHP Billiton is expecting a consolidation among Chinese steel mills, with the big getting bigger and the smaller ones perhaps falling away, analysts said following briefings by the diversified mining giant.
UBS resources analyst Glyn Lawcock said BHP indicated in briefings to the analysts at its eastern Australia mine sites that it saw steel production growth coming primarily from China, Russia, India and Brazil.
While China and Russia are most likely to remain self-sufficient to a large degree for coking coal, BHP believes India and Brazil's steel production are likely to be met almost entirely through imported coking coal, he said.
All four countries are also opting for blast furnace operations rather than electric arc furnaces due to the poor availability of scrap and the desire to build large-scale facilities.
