South Korea's industry ministry said Thursday it will work to maintain a stable supply of reinforcement steel products used for construction in the second half of 2021, although the recovery of the virus-hit economy may continue to drive up their market prices.

The local supply of rebar products is expected to reach 5.6 million tons in the July-December period, up 11 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The amount will surpass the anticipated demand of 5.5 million tons, which is 9 percent higher compared with 2020.

Despite the higher supply, however, the ministry said the local price of rebars may remain strong due to growing demand from the local industries in sync with the recovery of the virus-hit economy.

The average market price of rebars, which slipped to around 1 million won ($873) last month, bounced back to 1.2 million won this month, as the shorter-than-expected monsoon season also revitalized the demand from construction sites, according to industry sources.

The ministry urged local construction firms to refrain from hoarding the materials and vowed to make efforts to stabilize the price. (Yonhap)