OREANDA-NEWS  In January and February 2023, the supply of semi-finished steel products of Russian production to China decreased three times compared to the same period last year in absolute terms, to 96.2 thousand tons. Vedomosti writes about this with reference to statistics from the Main Customs Administration of China.

In monetary terms, the reduction looks even stronger — five times, up to $ 46.37 million, that is, Chinese companies have started to buy the product much cheaper.

At the same time, in 2022, Russia, against the background of European sanctions, managed to increase exports to China three times — up to 2.3 million tons and 1.34 billion dollars. The peak of deliveries occurred in July-October, but nothing was shipped in November, and in December — only 40 thousand tons.

An international trader, who was contacted by the publication for comment, noted that in recent months the Chinese direction has become problematic for Russian metallurgists. Delivery through the Eastern polygon (Trans-Siberian and Baikal-Amur highways) is difficult due to congestion, freight continues to rise in price, and the cost of production is growing. At the same time, buyers in China do not intend to pay more for products.

A temporary way out for metallurgists was Turkey, which, after a devastating earthquake, requires a lot of semi-finished steel products, and they are ready to pay. Prices in the domestic market have also increased significantly.