Global steel markets are being reshaped by two forces moving in opposite directions at once: a wave of low-cost Chinese exports reshaping pricing everywhere it lands, and a steady, structural rise in demand across Africa’s fast-urbanising economies. Alkagesta’s steel trading arm, Alkavex, is navigating that tension under the strategic and financial discipline of CEO Jean-Pierre Artigala and CFO Sylvain Artigala — with Deputy CEO Nijat Osmanli overseeing how that strategy translates into the market day to day. “What sets Alkavex apart is the extensive experience of our team in African markets and the long-standing relationships we have built with customers over many years,” Jean-Pierre Artigala said. “In a market that is exposed to trade policy shifts and some pricing volatility, financial discipline is what allows us to move quickly when opportunities emerge,” Sylvain Artigala added.
China’s Growing Shadow Over Global Steel
China’s influence on the global steel market has become difficult to overstate. According to the OECD’s Steel Outlook 2026, China’s steel exports rose 13.8% in 2025 to a record 131.2 million tonnes, even as global steel exports excluding intra-regional trade fell by 6.2%. China’s share of world steel exports has climbed from 19% in 2019 to 41% in 2025. “Chinese material often establishes the reference point for buyers evaluating alternatives,” Osmanli said. “This creates pressure on other producers to remain competitive while managing margins.”
Against that scale of competition, Africa’s unique market conditions — payment terms, logistics, infrastructure limitations — are exactly where the experience Alkavex has built matters most.
Raw material shocks have added a further layer of volatility. A mining accident in Shanxi province at the end of May — resulting in worker fatalities and the suspension of 155 coal mines across the region for safety inspections — pushed coking coal futures to a 19-month high in early June. The market initially expected steel prices to follow; seasonal demand weakness kept them under pressure instead. Disruption moved just as fast in the opposite direction elsewhere: a single weekend of shipping disruption through the Strait of Hormuz was enough to move steel prices and freight rates noticeably — a reminder of how quickly geopolitical events ripple into a market that, on paper, has nothing to do with oil.
Africa’s Steady Ascent
Africa has emerged as one of the steel industry’s most consistent growth stories against this backdrop of Chinese oversupply. Worldsteel’s April 2026 outlook projects African steel demand growth of 3.8% in 2026 and 4.6% in 2027. The OECD’s own analysis puts African demand growth even higher, at 16.1% in 2025 before an expected moderation to 4.4% in 2026 as investment cycles mature.
“Africa is at the heart of our growth strategy because steel demand is closely linked to economic development, urbanization, and infrastructure expansion,” Jean-Pierre Artigala said. “Unlike more mature markets, many African countries are still in the early stages of development and continue to require significant investments in housing, transportation, and industrial projects.” With population growth rates among the highest in the world, he expects the continent to remain one of the most attractive growth markets for steel over the coming years.
That demand plays directly to Alkavex’s product mix — wire rods, beams, hot-rolled coil, tubes and merchant bars have been the strongest sellers in 2026, alongside grinding balls, which reflect the continued importance of the mining industry across many African markets.
Where Execution Meets Financial Discipline
Despite the scale of these macro forces, the deals that succeed in this market are rarely decided by price alone. “Many people think steel trading is primarily driven by price, but in reality logistics, specifications, financing, documentation, and mill approvals are often just as important,” Osmanli said. Mills cannot halt production without incurring significant costs from idle capacity, while construction and industrial projects cannot tolerate delays in receiving material — a tension that puts a premium on coordination over negotiation. One recent deal made the point concretely: securing supply ahead of a customer’s project deadline came down to coordinating vessel availability and shipment timing, not shaving a few dollars off the price. Execution, not the headline number, is what closed it.
Financial discipline is what makes that execution possible at scale. “Steel trading margins can shift quickly on a single trade policy announcement or a quick raw material movement,” Sylvain Artigala said. “Our approach is to build financial discipline into every transaction, so we can move fast when opportunities appear without taking some risks we haven’t properly assessed.” That same discipline underpins the company’s expansion into Africa and, increasingly, South America — a market opened up by Alkavex’s strong access to Chinese-origin supply. Alkagesta’s existing petroleum products relationships across Türkiye and Eastern Europe give the steel business a further head start, providing established market knowledge and counterparty relationships as Alkavex expands into adjacent territories rather than building from scratch.
Long-Term Positioning Over Short-Term Opportunism
Raw materials still shape the cost base — Chinese production leans heavily on iron ore and coking coal, while Turkish producers operate predominantly through scrap-based electric arc furnaces — but movements in Chinese export volumes and global demand now often carry more weight in setting steel prices than raw material costs alone.
That volatility is exactly why Jean-Pierre Artigala argues for patience over opportunism. “Steel trading is ultimately a long-term business,” he said. “Drawing on more than 55 years of experience in the steel industry, I believe that companies that want to build a lasting presence and strong brand reputation must focus on long-term positioning rather than short-term gains. Markets naturally go through cycles and tend to correct themselves over time.” Sustainable success, in his view, comes from maintaining strong customer relationships and staying committed to strategic growth rather than chasing short-term price swings.
The greatest opportunities over the next six to twelve months sit at the intersection of infrastructure-driven demand, strategic sourcing and supply chain execution — with price volatility, trade restrictions and freight disruption as the real risks to watch.