Unlike many other business sectors that have suffered heavy losses, the steel industry is expected to benefit from the Sept. 21 earthquake for at least the next two years, according to industry experts. The market research section of China Steel (
According to Wang Chung-yu (
The steel industry's fortunes hit rock bottom in the first quarter of this year. With Taiwan and the region's gradual recovery following the financial difficulties over the past few years, the steel industry started to recover from the second quarter of the year. Indeed, the recovery was so strong that in July, China Steel's output of steel products reached the highest monthly output on record for the company. However, the dumping of H-shaped beams and rebars from other countries has kept the prices of these products very low.
The major steel products used for construction include rebars, H-shaped beams, angle bars, and steel structures. According to industry sources, the damage caused by the earthquake will create extra demand for around 2 million metric tons of rebars. Taiwan's regular yearly demand for rebars is around 5 to 6 million metric tons.
With the added demand, rebar prices have risen from about NT$7,200 per metric ton before the earthquake to NT$7,800 now. The price for H-shaped beams has increased from NT$9,300 per metric ton to NT$10,000.
Although steel prices are likely to continue to rise, several manufacturers say that they will not use the increased demand caused by the earthquake to raise steel prices for their own gains. With respect to this, Taiwan's Steel and Iron Industries Association has even set up a hotline for customers to file complaints over hiked steel prices.
Furthermore, to help people made homeless by the earthquake to rebuild their houses, steel manufacturers have agreed to give the priority to providing steel for rebuilding their houses.
According to Robinson Yang, (
In response to the increased demand for steel products, the TAIEX steel sub-index has risen from 63.39 before the earthquake to 68.35 yesterday.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
NO CONFIDENCE MOTION? The premier said that being toppled by the legislature for defending the Constitution would be a democratic badge of honor for him Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday announced that the Cabinet would not countersign the amendments to the local revenue-sharing law passed by the Legislative Yuan last month. Cho said the decision not to countersign the amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) was made in accordance with the Constitution. “The decision aims to safeguard our Constitution,” he said. The Constitution stipulates the president shall, in accordance with law, promulgate laws and issue mandates with the countersignature of the head of the Executive Yuan, or with the countersignatures of both the head of the Executive Yuan and ministers or
CABINET APPROVAL: People seeking assisted reproduction must be assessed to determine whether they would be adequate parents, the planned changes say Proposed amendments to the Assisted Reproduction Act (人工生殖法) advanced yesterday by the Executive Yuan would grant married lesbian couples and single women access to legal assisted reproductive services. The proposed revisions are “based on the fundamental principle of respecting women’s reproductive autonomy,” Cabinet spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) quoted Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君), who presided over a Cabinet meeting earlier yesterday, as saying at the briefing. The draft amendment would be submitted to the legislature for review. The Ministry of Health and Welfare, which proposed the amendments, said that experts on children’s rights, gender equality, law and medicine attended cross-disciplinary meetings, adding that
RSS