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Rebar output among the 137 Chinese long steelmakers Mysteel regularly tracks declined slightly over July 4-10, dipping by a tiny 0.6% on week to 3.76 million tonnes, as more of the sample mills in the survey stopped production to conduct annual maintenance on their facilities including bar rolling mills, according to Mysteel’s latest weekly production study.
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As expected, blast furnace capacity utilization among the 247 blast-furnace steel companies across China under Mysteel’s weekly survey continued to ease modestly over July 5-11 to 80.85%, down 0.28 percentage point or having refreshed its three-month low, according to Mysteel’s release on July 12.
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The spread between prices of large-sized graphite electrodes in China’s domestic market and smaller diameter electrodes is widening, Mysteel Global has learned, mainly because of the rise in demand among domestic electric-arc-furnace steelmakers for large-sized electrodes.
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Central China’s Henan province intends to close at least five coal mines within this year as part of the province’s program of removing small and inefficient mines to reduce excess capacity, according to a recent government website post seen by Mysteel Global.
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China’s steel scrap market is seen holding firm in the second half year of 2019, mainly due to likely strong demand among domestic steelmakers amid tight supplies, according to a market watcher Tuesday. As of June 28, Mysteel’s benchmark steel scrap price index had jumped by a total of Yuan 56/tonne ($8.1) from the end of last year to settle at Yuan 2,543.9/t on delivery to mills and including the 13% VAT. The price was also Yuan 370/t higher from one year before.
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The government of East China’s Jiangxi province has rejected plans drawn up by Hebei Shengbao Iron & Steel Group in Langfang city, North China’s Hebei province, to relocate to the province, a Jiangxi official confirmed on Tuesday.
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Mysteel’s benchmark steel scrap pricing index hit a yearly high of Yuan 2,590/tonne ($375.4/t) on delivery to mills and including the 13% VAT as of July 5, representing a rise of 1.8% on week, Mysteel’s latest data showed. China’s domestic steel scrap market had been gradually rising over the week as the seasonal decline in scrap availability is generating supply tightness, market watchers said Monday.
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The growth in China’s steel demand is expected to slow down during the second half of 2019 and so will the country’s steel output in turn, Qu Xiuli, vice chairman of the China Iron and Steel Association shared the prediction at the 2019 4th China Steel Derivatives International Conference in Shanghai on July 5.
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Blast furnace capacity utilization among the 247 blast-furnace steel companies across China Mysteel surveys weekly declined at a faster pace over the week of June 28-July 4 to reach 81.13%, a near three-month low and down by another 2.69 percentage points on week, according to Mysteel’s latest weekly survey released on July 5.
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Mysteel’s national average price of 500mm untra-high-power (UHP) graphite electrodes in East China’s Jiangsu province declined by a large Yuan 2,500/tonne ($362.3/t) on month to reach Yuan 24,500/t including the 13% VAT as of July 3, according to Mysteel’s latest data.
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Speculation is rife in China’s steel community that Baowu Steel Group Co (Baowu), the country’s largest steel producer by capacity and the world’s second largest maker, will soon acquire Chongqing Iron & Steel Group (Chonggang) in Southwest China’s Chongqing municipality.
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Mysteel’s benchmark steel scrap pricing index hit a yearly high of Yuan 2,583.6/tonne ($374.4/t) on delivery to mills and including the 13% VAT as of July 2, representing a rise of 0.3% on day or 1.6% on week, Mysteel’s latest data showed. China’s domestic scrap market has gradually strengthened since mid-June, thanks to the supply tightness amid the seasonal weakening of scrap availability, market insiders pointed out Wednesday.
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East China’s Shandong will cut 16.9 million tonnes/year of coking capacity over 2019-2020 to comply with the central government’s aim of reducing the country’s use of coal to preserve the environment. Though full details of the capacity removal plan won’t be revealed until later this month, a release by the Shandong provincial government on July 2 said the province will eliminate 10.3 million t/y of coke capacity this year and another 6.6 million t/y in 2020.
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Blast furnace capacity utilization rate among the 247 blast-furnace steel companies across China eased modestly for the third week, down another 0.73 percentage point on week to 83.8% as of June 27, according to Mysteel’s latest weekly survey released on June 28.
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China’s steel scrap market will see a moderate increase next month, mainly prompted by the lingering tightness of supply, according to market insiders on Thursday. Besides, the recovering profit margins on finished steel should encourage steelmakers to keep their production high.
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Shandong Iron & Steel Group (Shangang) in East China’s Shandong province, had to modestly trim its greenfield specialty steel capcity in Linyi, a coastal city of Shandong on failing to acquire enough old capacity quotas to fulfil the original 6 million tonnes/year plan, according to a government notice.
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China’s steel scrap market has witnessed a price recovery beginning last Monday, thanks chiefly to reduced availability. As of June 26, Mysteel’s spot market transaction price for 6-8mm common-carbon steel scrap in Zhangjiagang city, East China’s Jiangsu province, had jumped by Yuan 30/tonne ($4.3/t) on week to settle at Yuan 2,380/t excluding the 13% VAT.
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The 137 domestic rebar makers across China whose operations Mysteel regularly tracks eased up on their pace of production during the June 13-19 week, with their output declining by 1.5% on week to 3.76 million tonnes, according to Mysteel’s latest weekly production study. The capacity utilization rate of these mills also retreated by 1.3 percentage points on week to 82.5% during the survey period.
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China's graphite electrode market remained weak over the past week, mainly due to a notable decline in procurement demand among domestic electric-arc-furnace (EAF) steelmakers, with Mysteel's benchmark price for 500mm ultra-high-power (UHP) grade electrodes in East China's Jiangsu province losing some Yuan 2,500/tonne ($362.3/t) on week to reach a 23-month low of Yuan 24,500/t including the 13% VAT as of June 21.
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Alliance Steel (M) Sdn. Bhd, a China-invested steel company in Kuantan in East Malaysia, hosted a completion ceremony on June 15 to formally signal the end of construction on the first phase of its integrated steelworks project that will produce mainly rebars, wire rods and H-beams.
