China's ore imports are soaring again. BHP Billiton told Macquarie Research that the imports are expected to climb by 18% in 2006, to about 320M tonnes. Further increases will be coming through in 2007-8, when purchases from abroad are forecast to reach 360M tonnes and then 400M. Billiton added that supply growth is expected to remain constrained, so the market will remain tight. "China will continue to be the growth engine of the steel industry in the medium to long term," it predicted.
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