The national economy will gradually recover in 2010, resulting in a slight increase in the prices of construction materials such as steel and cement. It is predicted that construction materials will experience minor fluctuations in prices due to soaring input costs on the world market. Fierce competition between locally-made and imported steel However, the price of locally-made steel will not increase sharply because it has to compete against imported steel. In January 2010, the price of steel of the Vietnam Steel Corporation rose by VND90,000-120,000/tonne compared to the previous month. This was attributed to an increase in input costs, fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and high demand. Recently, the wholesale price of steel ranged from VND11.7-11.74 million/tonne in the northern region, while the price was higher in the south, VND11.52-12.12 million/tonne. The retail price in the north ranged from VND2.8-13.2 million/tonne, while steel retailed in the south for VND12.3-13.4 million/tonne. According to the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA), the steel sector will face numerous difficulties in 2010 due to an increase in input prices for iron ore, coal, oil, steel ingots and electricity. However, steel prices on the domestic market will remain stable as locally-made steel is facing tough competition…