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On the afternoon of August 23, 2024, the "2024 (Second) Liaocheng Seamless Pipe High-Quality Development Conference and China Steel Pipe Industry Green Development and Environmental Innovation Seminar" was successfully held in Liaocheng.
The summit was filled with over 600 attendees, including government officials, distinguished guests, industry experts, outstanding entrepreneurs, and media representatives.
At 14:00 on the 23rd, the conference officially entered the keynote speech segment. In the summit, Sun Keyong, the CEO of the Liaocheng Steel Pipe Traders Association and Chairman of Shandong Zhongye Group, provided an in-depth overview of Liaocheng's significant role as the largest seamless pipe trading hub in China and even globally. He emphasized that Liaocheng is base to over 500 manufacturing enterprises and more than 4,000 traders, all of whom collectively drive the prosperity and development of the seamless pipe market. With its vast scale and influence, the Liaocheng seamless pipe market has become a key engine for the industry's growth.
Sun Keyong also highlighted that the Liaocheng seamless pipe market has not only experienced rapid growth in scale but has also made remarkable strides in technological innovation and meeting customer needs. Among the industry leaders, Shandong Zhongye Group has invested 50 million RMB in production line technology upgrades, signaling that the Liaocheng seamless pipe market is steadily progressing towards higher quality and more sustainable development.
As an important part of Shandong Zhongye Group, Shanghai HXH will aim to enhance product quality and ultimately better meet customer needs. We are confident that through continuous technological innovation and market expansion, the Liaocheng seamless pipe market will achieve an even more brilliant future.
The presentation was given by Wu Lei, a specially invited expert from the Steel Pipe Branch of the China Steel Structure Association, on the topic "Analysis of the International Seamless Steel Pipe Industry's Operating Conditions and International Market Trends."
Mr. Wu first introduced the operating conditions of international seamless steel pipe companies Tenaris and Vallourec. In 2023, Tenaris achieved record levels of net sales, EBITDA, and net profit, although its net sales in the first quarter of 2024 dropped by 21% year-on-year. Vallourec's seamless steel pipe production in 2023 decreased by 14% year-on-year, mainly due to reduced shipments in the European industrial sector. In the first quarter of 2024, Vallourec's seamless steel pipe production decreased by 22% year-on-year, primarily due to reduced pipe production in Europe and a decline in OCTG shipments in North America. Regarding Vallourec's business outlook, the annual EBITDA is expected to be between 800 million and 850 million euros, with high international market prices and strong potential demand for the pipe business.
Fu Liguo noted that the energy consumption of China's seamless pipe industry is approximately 14 million tons of standard coal. In production, many high-energy-consuming devices are used, particularly in the hot rolling process, where motor electricity consumption accounts for 60%-70% of total electricity use. The industry is highly competitive, making cost reduction and efficiency improvement imperative. Reducing energy consumption equates to lowering product costs and enhancing corporate competitiveness. Over nearly a decade of development, China's steel pipe industry has become a veritable global leader.
However, certain phased and structural contradictions in the development process have emerged as "bottlenecks" that hinder the stable growth of the industry. The deep adjustment of the steel pipe industry is ongoing. He outlined future development trends as follows:
Improvement in product quality and added value;
Market concentration;
Green transformation in production and the adoption of intelligent manufacturing.
Deputy Secretary-General Yan first introduced the industrial structure and development status of the construction machinery sector, stating that the "13th Five-Year Plan" period was a golden era of continuous high-speed growth for China's construction machinery industry. He then provided a comprehensive analysis of industry data from recent years.
Finally, he mentioned that the key breakthroughs and development directions in the future include new high-tech construction machinery, intelligent manufacturing of construction machinery, high-reliability construction machinery products, digital platforms for construction machinery testing, trials, and evaluation, construction machinery industry chain enhancement projects, and industrial internet application platforms.
The resilience of construction machinery exports is strong, and China's construction machinery exports will likely remain at a high level. The construction machinery industry in 2024 is expected to experience stable growth, with a low beginning and high ending throughout the year.
Zhang Jun first discussed the development of the engineering construction industry and its role in the national economy, noting that the industry employs 52.53 million people and achieved a total output value of 31.6 trillion yuan in 2023. The national GDP exceeded 126 trillion yuan in 2023. He stated that China's construction industry is shifting from medium-high growth to medium-low growth.
In the first half of 2024, the construction industry faced certain challenges, with new contracts totaling 14.9 trillion yuan, a 3.4% year-on-year decrease. The main procurement methods for construction materials include open bidding, invited bidding, open inquiries, dynamic bidding procurement, competitive negotiation, cooperative negotiation, single-source procurement, and centralized (agreement) procurement. Open bidding accounts for about 50% of the total, and the application of centralized procurement is becoming increasingly widespread, particularly for bulk material purchases. Digital procurement is increasingly becoming a trend.
Xu Xiangchun first summarized the current state of the steel market, noting that the market continued to decline in the first half of the year, posing severe challenges to the steel industry. He questioned whether the market was repeating the mistakes of ten years ago. Compared to 2020, crude steel consumption in 2023 dropped by 116.16 million tons, while production only decreased by 45.92 million tons. The manufacturing sector could not offset the reduction in the real estate sector. Although exports remained high, large-scale exports did not improve the industry's predicament but instead triggered trade frictions.
Xu Xiangchun concluded that the root of the current dilemma lies in the steel mills' reluctance to cut production, resulting in heavy supply pressure. The stagnation of inventory clearance has increased short-term market pressure, with high output becoming the industry's roadblock to recovery. Mr. Xu emphasized that the only solution to break the deadlock is to reduce production.
After the speeches, the guests participated in the conference banquet, where everyone gathered, toasted to the success of the meeting, and shared warm sentiments. The "2024 (Second) Liaocheng Seamless Pipe High-Quality Development Conference and China Steel Pipe Industry Green Development and Environmental Innovation Seminar" thus concluded successfully!
Special thanks to the organizers: Liaocheng Economic and Technological Development Zone Management Committee, Liaocheng Industry and Information Technology Bureau, Liaocheng Steel Pipe Operators Association, and Shanghai Steel Union E-Commerce Co., Ltd.;
Co-organizers: Shandong Zhongzheng Steel Pipe Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Shandong Zhongye Group, Shandong Panjin Steel Pipe Manufacturing Co., Ltd., and Yunnan Qujing Steel Group Phoenix Steel Co., Ltd.;
Guiding units: Steel Pipe Branch of the China Steel Structure Association, Liaocheng Science and Technology Association, Liaocheng Volunteer Association for Poverty Relief (80s Development Alliance), Liaocheng Metal New Materials Association, and Zhengzhou Steel Trade Chamber of Commerce Steel Pipe Branch;
Sponsors: Liaocheng Yuanzheng Steel Co., Ltd., Xinpengyuan Intelligent Equipment Group Co., Ltd., Shandong Gangjie New Materials Co., Ltd., Shandong Juhui New Energy Group Co., Ltd., Hebei Shengtai Pipe Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Shandong Dayang Steel Pipe Group Co., Ltd., Shandong Dingding Special Steel Co., Ltd., Shandong Mingyang Qinda Steel Co., Ltd., Liaocheng Haixin Materials Co., Ltd., Tianjin Zhongye Lianchuang Steel Pipe Sales Co., Ltd., Shandong Zhongbao Metal Materials Co., Ltd., Hangzhou Boye Precision Tools Co., Ltd., Aojian Pipeline Equipment Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Tangshan Chuanwei Materials Co., Ltd., Tianjin Boyu Steel Pipe Co., Ltd., Tianjin Lixiang Pipeline Equipment Co., Ltd., Liaocheng Xiangrui Materials Co., Ltd., Shandong Xinyuanhua Metal Materials Co., Ltd., Shandong Maotong Pipe Industry Co., Ltd., and other units for their strong support.
