World steel demand set for sharpest decline since WWII

Reuters has reported that the world's steel industry is bracing for the steepest fall in demand since World War II, "as global economic downturn rips through the sector, chopping demand by almost 15 percent compared with 2008."

The World Steel Association reportedly expects apparent steel demandto fall by 14.9 percent to 1.019 billion tons this year, compared with 1.197 billion tons last year. Apparent steel use reflects the deliveries of steel to the marketplace from domestic steel producers as well as importers. This differs from real steel use, which takes into account steel delivered or drawn from industry inventories.

According to the report, the association said it expected demand to stabilize in the latter part of 2009, leading to a recovery in 2010.

The forecasts of World Steel are prepared by the association's research team and approved by its board of directors, which is headed by Lakshmi Mittal, the chairman of ArcelorMittal.