China’s August steel scrap imports slump 52% on month

China’s steel scrap imports from all regions slumped by 52.3% on month in August to 44,460 tonnes, according to data from the General Administration of Customs (GACC). The tumble reflected the parallel slump in demand from China’s steel mills and the widening price spread between domestic scrap and imported scrap, Mysteel Global noted from market sources.

Last month, China’s steel scrap imports from Japan, China’s largest steel scrap supplier, fell by a similarly large 54.8% from July to 31,798 tonnes. Japanese scrap nonetheless accounted for 71.5% of the total import volume. “The cool-down in August had to do with the lukewarm demand for scrap feeds among Chinese blast-furnace and electric-arc-furnace producers