Increasing domestic production capacity is one among solutions to stabilise the domestic steel market while prices are soaring in recent months (Photo: baochinhphu.vn) Ata recent Government meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khai asked theministry to find solutions to increase domestic steel production andensure supply and demand balance.
Theministry said that soaring steel prices had hit not only Vietnam but also theglobal market. Domestic steel production is heavily dependent on imported rawmaterials, making a price increase unavoidable.
Theministry said technical barriers and quality standards were being studiedto create a healthy market together with the active implementation of tradedefence instruments.
Aclose watch is being kept on the market development to handle the dumpingof some steel products into Vietnam as well as to cope with anti-dumpinglawsuits on products originating from Vietnam to minimise injuries to domesticproducers.
Marketwatch efforts have also been enhanced to prevent market manipulation or tradefraud which might cause loss to the State budget and negatively affectconsumers.
Theministry is studying policies to control exports of steel products which thedomestic market has a high demand for to propose to the Government for approvalwhile raising solutions to remove difficulties for steel production investmentprojects.
Accordingto Truong Ba Tuan, Deputy Director of the Tax Policy Department under theMinistry of Finance, Vietnam could consider adjusting safeguard duties on steelingots and construction steel products to lower prices.
OnMarch 20, the Ministry of Industry and Trade decided to continue imposingsafeguard duties on imported steel ingots for three more years.
Tuan,however, noted that lowering safeguard duties must be put under carefulconsideration to promote the domestic steel industry and stabilise thedomestic market. It was important to have solutions to ensure market supply anddemand balance and improve domestic production capacity, he said.
DangCong Khoi, Deputy Director of the Price Management Department under theMinistry of Finance, said the whopping rise in raw materials prices, includingsteel scrap and ingots, from mid-October 2020 had pushed up steel pricesglobally.
Statisticsshowed the current prices of raw materials increased by 37-39 percent againstOctober.
Oreprice hit more than 220 USD per tonnes on May 10 in the global market, breakingthe record of 194 USD set a decade ago.
TheMinistry of Industry and Trade said soaring steel prices in the domestic marketlargely affected other industries. Especially as the Government is acceleratingthe disbursement of public investment to drive economic growth amid thepandemic, high steel prices would push up investment costs and threaten todestroy the Government’s medium-term public investment plan.
Accordingto the Vietnam Steel Association, the domestic steel market would set a newprice level in 2021.
Theassociation urged its member manufacturers to expand production and organiseefficient distribution systems to help stabilise the domestic market./.
VNA
