China confirms crude steel control in 2025: what are the impacts?

Source: Mysteel Mar 13, 2025 16:55

Speculation about potential crude steel production restrictions in China has circulated since late February, which has dampened market sentiment and weighed on the demand outlook for raw materials. This led to a sharp drop in iron ore prices, with the Mysteel SEADEX 62% Australian Fines down 7.76% between February 24 and March 5, to nearly the $ 100/tonne threshold, despite relatively stable fundamentals amid declining portside inventories. In this article, MIOA will review historical crude steel control policies and their influence on production between 2021-2024, analyze the determinant factors of crude steel production this year and in the long term, as well as how it will affect the iron ore market moving forward.

2021-2024 Review: Only 2021 Saw Strict and Mandatory Production Restrictions The concept of crude steel production control was raised in 2020 and has remained an important driving force for market price changes in recent years. Table 1 summarizes the policies and their impacts on crude steel output each year between