According to the latest data released by the National Bureau of Statistics, while coke and finished steel production increased on a full-year basis, crude steel and pig iron production declined year-on-year, falling to multi-year lows.
In 2025, China’s coke production totaled 504.12 million tonnes, up 2.9% compared with the previous year. December coke output stood at 42.74 million tonnes, marking a 1.9% year-on-year and 2.5% month-on-month increase. However, average daily coke production in December fell 0.8% month-on-month to 1.38 million tonnes.
Finished steel production continued to rise over the full year. China’s total steel output reached 1,446.12 million tonnes in 2025, up 3.1% year-on-year. However, production momentum weakened in December. December steel output declined 3.8% year-on-year and 0.5% month-on-month to 115.31 million tonnes. During the same period, average daily steel production fell 3.7% month-on-month to 3.72 million tonnes.
The decline in pig iron production was more pronounced. China’s pig iron output in 2025 is expected to decreased 3% year-on-year to 836.04 million tonnes, marking the lowest level since 2020. In December, pig iron production dropped 9.9% year-on-year and 2.6% month-on-month to 60.72 million tonnes, extending the month-on-month decline to a seventh consecutive month. Average daily pig iron production in December also decreased 5.7% month-on-month to 1.96 million tonnes.
Weakness persisted in crude steel production as well. China’s crude steel output for 2025 is projected at 960.81 million tonnes, representing a 4.4% year-on-year decline and the lowest level since 2019. December crude steel production totaled 68.18 million tonnes, down 10.3% year-on-year and 2.4% month-on-month, marking the seventh consecutive monthly decline. Average daily crude steel production in December fell 5.6% month-on-month to 2.2 million tonnes.
Looking at China’s crude steel production over the past seven years, a volatile but downward trend is evident. Crude steel output stood at 995.4 million tonnes in 2019, rose to 1,064.8 million tonnes in 2020, then declined to 1,035.2 million tonnes in 2021, 1,018 million tonnes in 2022, and rebounded slightly to 1,028.9 million tonnes in 2023. In 2024, production decreased again to 1,005.1 million tonnes. In 2025, crude steel output is expected to decline 4.4% to 960.81 million tonnes, marking the lowest level since 2019.
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