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Crude steel production in Japan during the fiscal year 2017 ending March 31 slipped by 0.3% on year, or the first annual decline in two years, according to the data released by the Japan Iron & Steel Federation on April 20.
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China's capacity utilization rate across heavy industrial sectors increased 0.7 percentage point year on year to 76.5% for the first quarter of 2018, according to the latest data from the country's National Bureau of Statistics.
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Tertiary industry and consumption have been with growing significance to China's economic development, with both contributing to over 60% of the country's 6.8% gross domestic product growth in the first quarter of 2018, according to an explanatory note by China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on April 19.
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Global steel demand is expected to reach 1.62 billion tonnes in 2018, an increase of 1.8% on year, according to a new forecast issued by the World Steel Association (WSA) in its Short Range Outlook tabled on April 17. The WSA also estimated that world steel demand next year would hit 1.63 billion tonnes, or up 0.7% on year.
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China's fixed asset investment registered Yuan 10 trillion ($1.6 trillion) for the first three months of this year, according to the latest data from National Bureau of Statistics published on April 17.
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China's crude steel output continued trending upward in March, climbing by 4.5% year on year to 73.98 million tonnes, according to the latest output statistics released by China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on April 17.
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China's shipbuilders enjoyed a healthy 180% on-year surge in new vessel orders during the January-March quarter of this year to 15.5 million DWT (deadweight tons), according to the latest statistics released by China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry (CANSI) on April 13.
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Steel mills in Hebei province, North China, enjoyed excellent business during the first two months of this year, with their profits skyrocketing 54% on year to a combined total of Yuan 9.8 billion ($1.6 billion), according to a post on the Hebei provincial government's website on April 13. The average profit margin of the steelmakers included in Hebei's sample also rose by two percentage points on year to 6.31%, according to the post.
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China's March finished steel exports surged by 804,000 tonnes or 16.6% month on month to 5.65 million tonnes, according to the latest statistics released by China's General Administration of Customs on April 13.
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Sales of excavators in China in March leapt by 78.9% on year to 38,261 units, according to the latest statistics released by China Construction Machinery Association (CCMA) on April 8. Last month's total was the highest for any March since March 2011, the data show. CCMA's survey canvasses the performance of China's twenty-five leading excavator makers.
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China will launch a round of inspection in the country's steel industry in May-June to prevent any reincarnation of removed steel capacities including those with induction furnaces, according to Shui Hengyong, deputy director of the Metallurgical and Building Materials Division of China's National Development and Reform Commission(NDRC).
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China' s Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for the domestic manufacturing industry rose 1.2 basis points month on month to 51.5 in March, indicating that the country's manufacturing sector has been steadily improving, according to the latest release by China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on March 31.
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China's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for the steel industry rebounded 1.1 basis points on month to 50.6 in March, returning to the expansion zone after a short-time slide into contraction in February, according to the release by CFLP Steel Logistics Professional Committee (CSLPC) on March 31.
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Chinese offer prices for rebar export have continued to weaken following the traditional Chinese New Year break (February 15-21), closely tracking the continuous price decline in the domestic spot market since then, according to Mysteel’s data base. Domestic spot prices for rebar have declined by a total of Yuan 360
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Angang Iron & Steel Company (Ansteel), the listed arm of Anshan Iron & Steel Group headquartered in Anshan city in Northeast China's Liaoning province, produced 22.6 million tonnes of crude steel last year, up 3.6% year on year, according to its 2017 annual report published on March 27.
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China's blast furnace steelmakers and mini mills continued to enjoy robust profits over the first two months of this year, with their combined margins skyrocketing 97.7% year on year to Yuan 52.7 billion ($8.4 billion).
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Crude steel output among the 64 countries surveyed by the World Steel Association continued to increase in February, rising 3.5% year on year but declining 5.45% month on month to 131.8 million tonnes, according to the association's latest data published on March 26.
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China's national benchmark price for the HRB400 20mm rebar slid to a nine-month low as of March 26 to reach Yuan 3,764/tonne ($597/t) including the 17% VAT, according to Mysteel data. The price of this crucial construction steel item has now lost a total of Yuan 314/t since March 16.
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China's domestic steel prices are still under downward pressure, and they will hit the bottom in the near or medium term once the window of exports is open, Xu Xiaoqing, chief economist from DH Fund Management, predicted at a recent iron ore event in Qingdao, East China's Shandong province.
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Steel inventories among Chinese traders of the five major steel products comprising rebar, wire rod, hot-rolled and cold-rolled coils and medium plate over March 19-23 continued the decline which began last week and halted the climb in stocks that had persisted for 11 weeks straight.
