According to data released by the China Iron and Steel Association on January 7, average daily production at member mills during the 21–31 December period decreased by 11% compared with the previous ten days to 1.64 million tonnes. This corresponds to a daily loss of around 202,000 tonnes. Output was also down 12.3% on a year-on-year basis.
Production decreased across all six regions monitored by the association, with the sharpest contraction recorded in eastern China. Output at member mills in the region decreased by 18.6% over the period to 436,000 tonnes per day. Hebei province, the core of China steel industry, saw the largest decline in absolute terms, with output at local mills down by 44,000 tonnes per day, marking a 10.4% decrease. Detailed provincial data were not disclosed.
Including non-member mills, the association estimates that China total crude steel output averaged 2.02 million tonnes per day over the final 11 days of December, also showing an 11% decrease compared with the 11–20 December period.
Despite the slowdown in crude steel, finished steel output moved higher over the same period. CISA data show that average daily finished steel production at member mills increased by 4.9% to 1.89 million tonnes per day.
The most notable movement in the final days of the year was observed in inventories. Finished steel stocks held by member mills decreased by 11.7% between 20 and 31 December to 14.14 million tonnes. Inventories stored at commercial warehouses in 21 cities regularly monitored by CISA also decreased by 3.6% to 7.21 million tonnes.
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