Techint president Paolo Rocca says the global steel market may soon suffer form the impact of overcapacity due to regional imbalances in supply and demand, mainly China.

"It is very likely that in the near future we will have t oface a serious problem," he says, recalling the disruption a decade ago when the Soviet Union suddenly reduced domestic consumption. "Any reduction in the rate of demand growth in China, if not contained at a regional level, could have a strong negatýve affect on worldwide markets."

Otherwise, he believes that the global market appears headed for a soft landing, with a slowdown in the current growth rate. He says pain is more likely to come "from our own inability to react fast enough in the face of regional imbalances."

Global industry executives shared Rocca's concerns in discussions at the 40th annual IISI meeting in Buenos Aires. American efforts to blok Chinese imports with China-specific trade laws so far have failed.

But a US executive tells that steelmarkers would still likely turn to their governments, keeping all legal options open, if Chinese steel begins to flood markets.