To enable the steel industry to move out of its present troubles, certain technological ch

allenges have to be recognized, faced and overcome. First of all, steel must become more affordable. Steel consumption is an index of economic development and the per-capita consumption in industrialized countries is substantially higher than that in the largely agricultural economies of Asia, Africa and South America. As the economic focus of these regions shifts inexorably towards industry, this vast under-privileged population would consume more steel than the complete currently idle steel-making capacity could ever hope to produce.

The second challenge: Like any other mineral processing industry, production of steel results in a net depletion(用尽) of non-renewable resources of ore and energy and leads to an irreversible degradation (退化) of the global environment. Apparently, this cannot go on for ever. The steel industry must harmonize itself to the needs of both the current generation as well as those of the future, and devise ways to transcend the ecological limits on growth.

The third challenge is the ability to change. Change is a time-tested mechanism for growth, and the ability to change is the hallmark of successful organizations. The steel industry with its large capital investments and long product development life cycles, finds itself very often out of accordance with global trends. The industry in general and individual plants in particular, must reengineer their technological operations, and become flexible enough to manage change, cope with uncertainty and thrive in a dynamic environment.

The image of steel has become one of a sunset industry, which in turn deters(阻止) the best and brightest brains in the land from making a career in iron and steel. If not today, then very shortly, we are heading for an acute scarcity of new ideas with which to overcome our current problems. This is the final and perhaps the most difficult challenge. We must improve our image. We must motivate and assemble the best talents to our cause, if only to have the money to meet all the other challenges which we are facing.

The big potential steel market is ______.

A．in industrialized countries

B．in agricultural countries

C．in Asia, Africa, and South America

D．in European countries