Steel production in China in January-October decreased by 2.2% year on year

According to the latest data released by the country's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on 15 November.

In October alone, China produced 79.76 million tons of crude steel, up 11% from last year. And the country's daily steel output averaged 2.57 million tons per day, down 11.2% from the previous month after a two-month rise, Mysteel Global calculated based on NBS data.

The decrease in daily production compared to the previous month was mainly due to the fact that some Chinese steel producers, including blast furnace (BF) and electric arc furnace (EAF) manufacturers, either carried out maintenance of their steel facilities or reduced production rates. in October, as their profit margins contracted due to weakening steel prices, according to Mysteel Global, and many plants again suffered losses.

For example, the capacity utilization rate among 247 blast furnaces across the country fell to 87.64% from October 21 to 27, according to a study by Mysteel, down 1.5 percentage points from the end of September, and only 27. 71% of the factories included in the sample continued to be profitable during the period. .

Another survey conducted by Mysteel among 91 selected DP manufacturers across the country showed that their average rebar sales loss last month was 82 yuan per ton (US$ 11.6 per ton), as opposed to a small profit of 21 yuan per ton they earned in September.

Finished steel prices in China continued to decline last month, Mysteel Global learned, mainly due to weaker-than-expected end-user demand and negative domestic market sentiment.

As of October 31, the domestic price of the 20mm HRB400E rebar, which is the driving force in the Chinese steel market, was priced by Mysteel at 3,883 yuan per ton including 13% VAT, 287 yuan per ton lower than at the end of September. .

And daily trading volume of construction steel, including rebar, wire rod and coiled bars, among 237 Chinese trading houses tracked by Mysteel averaged 156,917 t/d in October, down 23,097 t/d or 12.8% lower than the previous month.

In October alone, China's finished steel production was 114.8 million tons, up 11.3% year-on-year, while production in the first 10 months was 1.1 billion tons, down 1.4% from for the same period last year, according to NBS data.