Hebei's steel PMI slips into contraction territory in June

The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for the steel industry in North China's Hebei province, the country's top steel production base, fell further by 4 percentage points on month to register 47.7 in June, slipping into the contraction zone below 50 again after expanding for three months in a row, according to the Hebei Metallurgical Industry Association.

Despite that, Hebei's PMI in June was still 1.8 percentage points higher than the national steel PMI, which dipped 0.5 percentage point to 45.9, as reported. Specifically, the sub-index for new orders received by Hebei's steel mills in June declined by 7.7 percentage points from May to sit low at 43.6,