In May, Vietnam imported around 1.4 million tons of steel, taking the total imported volume of steel to 5.7 million tons in the five-month period.
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Additionally, a total of nearly 9.7 million tons of all types of steel were produced, up 24% against the same period last year, and up 41.7% as compared with 2016.
VSA members sold some 6.7 million tons of steel, representing an increase of 35.2% year-on-year, of which 1.6 million tons were exported, up 47.7% year-on-year, according to the association.
Between January and April, Vietnam imported around 1.82 million tons of steel from China, down 34% year-on-year, accounting for 42.5% of Vietnam's total steel import volume.
In the other handn, Vietnam exported over 1.08 million tons of steel during the four-month period to ASEAN - its biggest export market, which accounted for over 57% of Vietnam's total products for export, followed by the US (15.2%), the European Union (10%), South Korea (4.1%), and Taiwan (China) with 3.3%.
Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Steel Association Nguyen Van Sua forecast that the steel industry will continue on its high growth trajectory of 20% - 22% this year, thanks to rising market demand.
The strongest growth will be seen in the production of hot-rolled steel with 154%, followed by welded steel pipe (15%), colored galvanized steel (12%), construction steel (10%), and cold-rolled steel (5%).
