"The price per ton of steel in the world market in December 2012 stood at 700 dollars. There is the possibility that the price would rise by about 80-90 dollars per ton", PT Krakatau Steel President Director Irvan Kamal Hakim said here on Wednesday.
He said that steel price would increase because the current world price trend had reached the lowest point. At the time, producers only faced two options: stop production or raising price, he said.
Irvan said that the increase trend could already be observed at the end of 2012 where the price of first quality HMS1 scrap rose from US$390 to US$430 per ton in January.
"I could not yet reveal the price at the end of the year because its official data was not yet issued by the Central Board of Statistics (BPS)," he added.
He said that national steel consumption in 2011 reached 9.7 tons. In 2012, it is predicted to increase by six to eight percent of the figure in 2011.
"This means that there was growth in national steel consumption in 2012, although it was only small," he added.
Irvan said that about 65 percent of national steel needs would be supplied by domestic market next year. "In 2013, steel imports are expected to reach 35 percent," he added.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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