On the demand end, the gasoline demand is likely to remain robust due to rising travel needs when the holiday kicked off. The gasoil consumption, on the other hand, was poor still with outdoor projects suspending for holiday, and logistics services stalling for the same cause.

Billet prices in Tangshan in North China's Hebei province continued to retreat amid a growing supply-demand mismatch this week, with Mysteel assessing the price of Q235 150mm square billet in the city on February 13 at Yuan 2,900/tonne ($420/t) EXW including the 13% VAT, down by Yuan 10/t on

Daily crude steel output among the member mills of the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) averaged 1.95 million tonnes/day during February 1-10, edging up by 0.6% or by 11,000 t/d from the last 11 days in January, according to the latest release from the association on February 13.