Moody’s says Asian steel outlook is negative

Rating agency Moodys has revised the outlook for the Asian steel industry to negative from stable as it expects profits of steel firms in this region to decline in the second half of 2013 on the back of slow demand growth,over-supply coupled with destocking.

The negative industry outlook reflects our expectation that Asian steel manufacturers profits will decline in the second half of 2013 and remain at a historically low level over the next 12 months as destocking kicks in,demand growth remains slow and excess supply continues, the rating agency said in a report.