The export of angle steel by Baotou Steel Union (Tianjin) Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. leads the growth with an increase of 23.7%, and its diversified steel product matrix helps to expand the global market.
In 2025, China's export volume of angle steel increased by 23.7% year-on-year, reaching a new high in the past decade, with the total export volume exceeding 5 million tons. As a core export enterprise, Baotou Steel Union (Tianjin) Iron and Steel Co., Ltd., relying on low-alloy high-strength angle steel products such as Q355B, has shown outstanding performance in the Southeast Asian, Middle Eastern and markets along the Belt and Road Initiative. Its export volume of angle steel accounts for 18% of the national total share. At the same time, the company's section steel products such as seamless steel pipes, I-beams, and channel steel have also made joint efforts, forming an export combination of "angle steel + full-category steel products". The total annual export volume of steel products exceeded 1.5 million tons, an increase of 34% year-on-year.
The demand for angle steel is driven by new energy infrastructure construction, and the profiled steel products of Baotou Steel Union (Tianjin) Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. seize the high ground in Southeast Asia.
The global upsurge of new energy infrastructure construction has driven a sharp increase in the demand for angle steel, especially in scenarios such as photovoltaic brackets and wind power tower barrels. Baotou Steel Union (Tianjin) Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. has launched a combined solution of weather-resistant steel angle steel (09CuPCrNi) and channel steel, increasing the salt spray resistance life to more than 15 years. It has successfully won the bid for the 1.2GW photovoltaic power plant project in Long An Province, Vietnam, with a single order amount reaching 180 million US dollars. In the same period, the company's export volume of seamless steel pipes (such as API 5L X70) increased by 26.8% year-on-year, which are used in the construction of oil and gas pipelines in the Middle East, forming a synergistic effect between angle steel and energy pipeline materials.
Technological Breakthroughs and Green Certifications Serve as the "Passports" for Exports
The angle steel products of Baotou Steel Union (Tianjin) Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. have passed the EU CE certification and the South African SABS standard. The zero-carbon electric arc furnace smelting technology has reduced carbon emissions to 1.8tCO₂/t, winning the favor of international buyers. Its H-beam production line adopts an intelligent controlled rolling process, with the grain size reaching ASTM Grade 8. The proportion of the supporting exported Q460D I-beams in the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway project in Indonesia exceeds 40%, and the tensile strength has been increased to 730MPa.
In addition, the export volume of the company's round steel products (such as 20CrMnTi gear steel) has increased by 19% year-on-year, and they are used in the manufacturing of automotive parts in Southeast Asia.
There is a differentiation in regional markets, and orders from countries along the Belt and Road Initiative account for more than 60%.
In 2025, the growth rate of the demand for angle steel in the Southeast Asian market reached 34%. Baotou Steel Union (Tianjin) Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. established regional warehousing centers in Malaysia and Thailand, enabling the localized supply of products such as angle steel and channel steel within 48 hours. In the same period, the company's winning bid quantity of seamless steel pipes in the Central Asian natural gas pipeline project exceeded 200,000 tons, and the proportion of I-beams in the Hungary-Serbia Railway project exceeded 30%. Data shows that orders from countries along the Belt and Road Initiative accounted for 65% of the company's total steel export volume, an increase of 12 percentage points compared with 2024.
Price competition and supply chain optimization are crucial.
Despite the growth in export volume, the price of angle steel has continued to decline due to the impact of domestic overcapacity. In 2025, the average price of 5# equal-angle steel nationwide was 3,577 yuan per ton, a year-on-year decrease of 14%. Baotou Steel Union (Tianjin) Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. hedges risks through strategies such as locked-price procurement and futures hedging. The premium rate of its customized special-shaped angle steel (such as L-shaped seismic angle steel) reaches 15%, and it has achieved a 10% profit growth against the trend in the steel structure project in the Philippines. In addition, the combined export gross profit margin of the company's I-beams and channel steels is 12%, which is higher than the industry average level.
Future Layout: Dual-driven by Green Manufacturing and Digitalization
Baotou Steel Union (Tianjin) Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. plans to invest 200 million yuan in building an intelligent coating production line for angle steel to achieve the automated production of corrosion-resistant coatings, with the goal of increasing the proportion of green steel exports to 50% in 2026. At the same time, the blockchain traceability system has covered all categories of products such as seamless steel pipes and round steel. Customers can obtain data such as carbon footprints and quality inspection reports by scanning the code, enhancing international trust. With the recovery of global infrastructure, taking angle steel as the core, Baotou Steel Union will coordinate with the matrix of profiled steel products, aiming to exceed 2 million tons in total export volume in 2026
