WEEKLY: China EAF mills increase production despite negative margins

Steel production among Chinese electric-arc-furnace (EAF) steelmakers continued to rise during March 6-12, as more mills resumed operations following the Chinese New Year holiday, according to Mysteel's latest survey.

During the survey period, the average capacity utilization rate among the 94 independent EAF steelmakers under Mysteel's tracking rose for the second consecutive week by substantial 29.7 percentage points to 50.4%, while their average operational rate jumped 32.6 points to 57.3%. The production increase was mainly driven by mini-mills in