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Among the four major electrical home appliances manufacturing in China, that of air-conditioner declined the most by 17.2% on month to 15.3 million units for August, though the volume was still 0.5% higher on year, according to the latest data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), though market sources remained optimistic on higher production for the last quarter of 2020.
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China’s shipbuilders received new vessel orders totalling about 15 million dead weight tons (dwt) over January-August, or down 4.5% on year, according to the latest data from the China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry (CANSI), there was a slight improvement from the 4.8% on-year drop for the first seven months, but the concern persisted on the insufficiency of the backlog.
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The pickup in China’s automotive market seen in August is likely to gain further traction this month and next, according to a new report from Mysteel’s Research Institute (MRI). Traditionally, September-October are busy months for the country’s auto market but this year business could get a further boost from the longer National Day holiday which falls in this period, and upcoming large-scale auto promotions, the MRI report notes.
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Production and sales of automobiles in China both witnessed on-year rises for the fifth successive month in August, mainly thanks to the stabilizing economy and a series of policies aimed at stimulating purchasing, according to the latest release from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) on September 10. Market sentiment also largely improved last month, the association noted.
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Key indicators for construction in the United States, China and Europe continued showing improvement in June and July, although building activity in India was weighed down by a slowdown in infrastructure investment, according to a report shared by the World Steel Association (WSA).
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Amid soaring sales of excavators and other earthmoving equipment in China so far this year, Shandong and Jiangsu, both in East China, have been the core driving forces, an official from the China Construction Machinery Association (CCMA) confirmed, indicating the faster construction pace and stronger demand locally in these two comparatively developed provinces.
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Excavator sales to Chinese domestic customers and for export in August marked another sharp on-year increase, jumping by a remarkable 51.3% on year to 20,939 units, according to the latest statistics from the China Construction Machinery Association (CCMA) published on September 9.
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The powerful typhoon Haishen hit Kyushu, southern island of Japan on late September 6, forcing the local steel mills to halt steel production temporarily out of safety concerns amid torrential rains and strong winds, steel mill sources confirmed on Monday.
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Domestic sales of heavy-duty trucks in China continued to perform well in August, surging by 85% on year to around 128,000 units, according to the latest release from Beijing-headquartered Commercial Vehicle World (CVWorld). Though sales of these trucks have now witnessed healthy on-year rises for five successive months, the August result was still down 8% from July, the data showed.
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Japan's auto sales in August dropped by 16% on year, new industry data shows, as consumer confidence continued to languish in response to the coronavirus contagion. Nevertheless, last month’s result was not all bad, and sales this month are expected to show some improvement, doubtless to the relief of the country’s carbon and special steel producers, Mysteel Global notes.
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Japan’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the manufacturing industry recovered by 2 basis points on month to 47.2 in August, being much higher than the 11-year low of 38.4 in May, indicating that the sector had been on the gradual recovery, according to the release from au Jibun Bank Corporation on September 1.
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Japan’s domestic sales of stainless hot-rolled and cold-rolled coils and sheets from 32 coil centers recovered moderately in July, up 3.9% on month but still down 25.4% on year to 45,937 tonnes, according to the latest data released by the Japan Stainless Coil Center Association (JSCA) on August 27, indicating that the domestic demand had bottomed out, market sources shared.
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Toyota Motor, Japan’s largest automaker, has informed its auto parts suppliers that it plans to maintain its daily output at about 13,000 units/day over September-November at its domestic plants, or roughly back to the pre-pandemic level, industry sources in Nagoya, central Japan and Tokyo shared on August 25.
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China’s shipbuilders received new vessel orders equivalent to nearly 14 million dead weight tons (dwt) over January-July, lower by 4.8% on year, according to the latest data released by China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry (CANSI) on August 21. This was in contrast to the 3.4% on-year rise seen in new orders over H1, Mysteel Global notes.
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The upsurge in construction of 5G base stations across China has been giving support to steel demand, especially that for thick-gauge hot-rolled coils (HRC), market sources told Mysteel Global. The establishment of the 5G network has been gaining speed, with 5G towers being installed one after another across the country, especially in larger and more wealthy urban centres, they noted.
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China’s production of air-conditioners in July increased 6% on year to 18.5 million units, according to the latest data from China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). However, the July result represented a large decline of 6.4 million units or 25.7% from June, Mysteel Global noted.
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Sales of Chinese excavators at home and abroad surged by 54.8% on year in July, according to the latest statistics from the China Construction Machinery Association (CCMA) published on August 11. Last month’s performance marked the fourth straight month with an on-year increase, indicating that bookings – especially from the construction sector – stayed firm, even though July is traditionally a slack consuming month, Mysteel Global noted.
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China’s production and sales of new energy vehicles (NEVs) saw their first year-on-year growth this year in July, rising by 15.6% and 19.3% respectively, according to the latest statistics of the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) published on August 11.
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Domestic sales of heavy-duty trucks in China surged by 89% on year to no less than 140,000 units for July, according to a preliminary estimate calculated by Beijing-headquartered Commercial Vehicle World (CVWorld) on August 2. The robust trucks sales were thanks to firm demand from the infrastructure construction sector and the elimination of trucks conforming to the superseded National Emission Standard Stage III.
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Japan’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for its manufacturing industry recovered by a large 5.1 points on month to 45.2 points in July, though the result was still below the threshold value of 50 connoting growth. Nonetheless, index provider au Jibun Bank Corp noted the reading was the highest since February and indicated that Japanese business expectations continue to recover from their low in April.
