Steel inventory rises as demand declines faster than supply

By Product:  

• Rebar: Production declined significantly, but apparent consumption fell even more than expected. While inventories at the trading market continued to decrease slightly, mills' in-plant inventories accumulated, weakening overall market fundamentals.
• HRC: Production remained on an upward trend, but apparent consumption declined significantly. Mill inventory stayed flat, while social inventory turned to accumulation. As a result, total inventories increased, and fundamentals weakened.
• CRC: With higher production and falling demand, inventories returned to accumulation.
• Plate: Both production and apparent consumption declined, with demand dropping more significantly, leading to a build-up of inventories from previously low levels.

Overall, demand declined due to the holiday, but the extent of the decline exceeded expectations. As a result, total demand fell more sharply than supply, and inventories shifted from drawdown to accumulation. Overall, this week's data reflected a weaker market performance.

Written by Cathy Zhao, zhaoshuzhen@mysteel.com

Edited by Hannah Yang, yangqi@mysteel.com

For more information and timely updates, please contact zhaoshuzhen@mysteel.com.

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