U.S. orders for RI steel products stop<\/p>\n
Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Purchase orders for Indonesian steel pipe products from the
\nvital U.S. market stopped when the U.S. economy plunged into
\nrecession, the Indonesian Steel Pipe Manufacturers Association
\n(Gapipa) said.<\/p>\n
\"We have not received any orders from American buyers for
\nfourth quarter shipment,\" Gapipa secretary general Untung Yusuf
\ntold The Jakarta Post, adding that orders should have been
\nsubmitted in September.<\/p>\n
He also predicted that no shipments would take place in the
\nfirst quarter of next year, with the U.S. economy still expected
\nto be in the doldrums.<\/p>\n
Untung said that about 70 percent of the country's total steel
\npipe exports of 40,000 tons last year went to the U.S. market,
\nwith the remainder going to Australia.<\/p>\n
Untung called on the government to implement measures to
\nprotect against the influx of cheaper imported products from
\nChina and South Korea amid the weakening export market.<\/p>\n
\"The government should venture to take measures to avoid the
\nlocal market from being flooded with cheaper imported products,\"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
Untung said that Gapipa had formally conveyed these concerns
\nto the government and asked for protection, but the government
\nhad, so far, taken no action.<\/p>\n
\"We are now facing difficulties competing with imported steel
\npipe products, because their prices are about 30 percent lower
\nthan locally made products,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said that the country's steel pipe output was expected to
\ndecline by between 20 percent and 25 percent this year, compared
\nwith last year's figure of 260,000 tons.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/us-orders-for-ri-steel-products-stop-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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