Hanoi Iron and Steel – (HSV) – In the context of many steel factories in Europe being closed due to rising energy costs, Vietnamese steel enterprises will still have more opportunities for export activities to these potential markets in the year-end period. Furthermore, the outlook for domestic consumption also promises to improve as a series of investment projects will speed up progress.
According to data from the General Department of Customs, Vietnam continued to have a trade deficit of more than 270,000 tons of iron and steel of all kinds in August, down 8.2% compared to July. Specifically, iron and steel imports in August decreased by 13.6% compared to the previous month, reaching more than 785,000 tons. Meanwhile, exports also decreased sharply by 16.3% to about 513,000 tons. Cumulatively from the beginning of the year until now, our country has had a trade deficit of more than 2.2 million tons of iron and steel, in contrast to the same period last year when Vietnam recorded a trade surplus of nearly 330,000 tons.
According to the Vietnam Commodity Exchange (MXV), last year, the continuous economic stimulus of major countries around the world after the pandemic boosted the demand for iron and steel. Meanwhile, Vietnam's steel industry competitiveness is constantly improving, and this has opened up great opportunities in international trade activities.
However, in the current period when major economies tighten monetary policy to control escalating inflation, the demand for goods in general and iron and steel in particular tends to cool down. This poses many big challenges for Vietnam's steel export industry.
However, in the context of many steel mills in Europe being closed due to rising energy costs, Vietnamese steel enterprises will still have many opportunities to export to these potential markets in the end of the year. Furthermore, the outlook for domestic consumption also promises to improve as a series of investment projects will speed up progress. The iron and steel industry needs to continue to improve and improve quality to take advantage of opportunities from challenges.
Metals benefited from the greenback's weakness
On the metal market, silver recorded a spike of 5.82%, the highest increase since the end of July this year, closing at 19.86 USD/ounce. Platinum extended its upward momentum for the 6th consecutive session, reaching 904.2 USD/ounce after increasing 3.11%. This is platinum's longest increasing streak since December 2020.
Ahead of the release of inflation data through the CPI consumer price index in the US in August, the Dollar Index is currently recording its lowest closing level in 3 weeks. Investors believe that inflation will continue to cool in August and this will cause the US Federal Reserve (Fed) to slow down the process of raising interest rates in the future.
Previously, the capital market reacted strongly to the drastic comments from Fed officials and according to some analysts, the market fell into an oversold state. Therefore, the weakening US Dollar has supported silver and platinum prices to soar again. These are the two capital goods most sensitive to interest rates and the greenback.
For the base metals group, COMEX copper continued its upward momentum for the second consecutive session with an increase of 1.19% to 3.61 USD/pound, supported by the weakening momentum of the USD. In addition, risks from supply at the world's largest copper mine, Escondida, owned by the Chilean state, still exist as workers agreed to temporarily stop work this week as planned, to conduct discussions with local officials about labor safety disagreements.
In contrast, iron ore weakened slightly with a decrease of 0.88% to 102.07 USD/ton, amid concerns that the number of COVID-19 infections in China will increase after the holiday season. Testing rules are now being tightened for workers returning to work, risking disruptions to production and putting pressure on prices.