According to the latest statement of the South East Asia Iron and Steel Institute (SEAISI), steel consumption in the ASEAN region increased by 5.9% y-o-y to 39 million tons in the first half of 2019.

Demand in the region was mainly driven by Vietnam. Supported by a number of construction projects in Vietnam, steel consumption in the first half of 2019 increased by 22.6% y-o-y.

Steel consumption in the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia also increased slightly. Thailand was still in a recession, and its steel consumption fell by 2.7% y-o-y. Singapore's steel consumption fell by 16% y-o-y.

With the overall demand of the ASEAN region rising, the volume of production, imports and exports in the region also grew. The iron and steel production in the ASEAN region increased by 9.7% y-o-y to 21.6 million tons, the import volume increased by 5.6% y-o-y, and the export volume increased by 16.7% y-o-y.