The chairman of the Indonesian Iron and Steel Industry Association (IISIA) recently said that a large amount of Chinese automotive steel plates may be shifted to the Southeast Asian market for export as a result of the tariff increase imposed by the US on Chinese steel products. In the competition with low-cost imported resources, Indonesia's local steel industry has no obvious advantages.

The association has called on the government to enhance import controls on steel to protect the domestic steel industry, and has also indicated that if the government does not take action in the next six months, there may be massive layoffs in the steel industry.