It is said: Russia's pipe industry consumed 3.89 million tonnes of steel strip in January-September, up 11% on the year,according to NLMK.

　　Gushchin did not include other steel-consuming industries in his presentation at the conference. The country'slargest steel consumer is the construction industry, followed by the pipe-making sector.

　　Russia's ministry of economy expects the country's gross domestic product to inch up by 0.5% this year. The

　　International Monetary Fund forecasts a similar growth rate for the country's economy in 2015, but the Russian ministry of economy expects GDP to grow by 1.2% next year.

　　NLMK expects Russian steel product usage to inch up by 1% in 2015 to 41.3 million tonnes. "The exact numbers

　　will depend on the state of economy, on the rouble's exchange rate against the foreign currencies, and on the

　　accessibility of the funding," Gushchin said.

　　The company's forecast coincides with the one by worldsteel, which also expects Russian steel consumption to

　　grow by 1% next year.

　　The Russian Metals Market conference was organised by Metal Supply & Sales magazine in Moscow.