The British Metal Bulletin "MEPS" published in the "Developing China/Home Market Steel Review" published on December 22, 2009, that at present, the prices of steel products in developing countries are mixed.

The Turkish market is disrupted by weak seasonal demand and religious festivals. The interest of active buyers has made steel producers of long products afraid to pass on higher raw material costs to buyers. However, if raw material prices continue to rise, this strategy may end soon. In terms of flat products, Eldermere Steel has lowered its basic quotation since the beginning of September 2009, and the benefits of short-term agreements between buyers and sellers still exist.

The UAE steel market has been shrouded in gray clouds in December 2009. In recent weeks, Abu Dhabi and Dubai have been mentioned as important issues for discussion. The debt problem has damaged the confidence of buyers, coupled with the global credit crisis has not yet been shaken off, demand may decline further.

In December 2009, India’s major steel producers cut their reference prices for most domestic products, and their goal is still to restrict imports of steel. Lower prices have stimulated purchasing activities, and some departments and steel companies have already hinted that prices will be raised in the first quarter of 2010. Others in the industry believe that steel prices have not yet bottomed out.

The conditions of the South African steel market have not yet improved. Highveld Steel (Highveld) once again followed the pricing strategy adopted by ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA). In fact, local quotations are already rolling automatically. For January 2010, local analysts are still cautiously optimistic.

Brazilian steel producers are still optimistic about the strength of the market recovery. In December 2009, domestic prices in Brazil climbed upward, and steel distributors also increased their inventory prices. Market participants believe that if current prices are to be maintained, local steel mills must resume steel exports.

The recovery of the Mexican steel industry continues to be hampered by difficult terms of trade. Low demand puts further downward pressure on steel quotations in the domestic market. Local steel producers have increased the actual prices of some products, mainly by removing discounts on steel prices, which has angered downstream steel processing users. In January 2010, market sentiment will be mixed, and steel prices will go up and down. Manufacturers are currently pushing for as much as 5% of price increases, while end users are demanding a "real sense" cut in steel prices.

Due to the seasonal decline in demand, the CIS steel market is now very weak. Major local steel companies have chosen to cut the reference price to protect their market share. Steel traders have adopted similar price strategies. The Russian steel industry believes that the current low prices in the steel industry will not continue, and the local steel mills will still have a long way to go before they can resume full-load production and profitability. Layoffs, shortening working hours and filing for bankruptcy are still much talked about topics. Russia has approved a decree to impose a 5% import tariff on some cold-rolled products, which will be implemented in January 2010.

In Ukraine, the trading environment has begun to stabilize. Domestic quotations for most steel products provided by local steel mills are now lower than export quotations. This strange phenomenon has been corrected by the memorandum of understanding between the relevant units and the steel company. In January 2010, its domestic steel producers intend to increase the output of finished rolled steel by 4.5 percentage points to 2.77 million tons.