The Korean steelmaker Dongkuk Steel decided to reduce slab imports gradually. In the first quarter of this year, Korea's slab imports totaled 334,000 tons. The monthly imports averaged at 110,000 tons, falling by 80,000 tons in comparison of the figures in the same period of a year ago. The decreased slab imports were caused by Dongkuk Steel's cut on slab imports. Dongkuk Steel's slab imports slumped by 45% year on year in the first quarter of this year, due to sluggish demand for heavy plates and lower selling prices.
