WEEKLY: China's ferrous scrap demand wanes, mills' stocks expand

The interest of Chinese steelmakers in buying steel scrap weakened during the past week, the results of Mysteel's latest survey showed. Tepid demand for steel from end-users, together with production curbs imposed as anti-pollution measures, caused mills to rein in production, according to market watchers.

During December 22-26, the total volume of steel scrap consumed by the 300 blast furnace (BF) and electric-arc-furnace (EAF) steelmakers under Mysteel's regular tracking decreased, albeit by a small 0.1% on week, to 558,010 tonnes/day. Blast furnace steelmakers reduced their use of steel scrap since the price advantage of scrap