China's steel output in March will almost certainly be lower on a yearly basis, but could potentially be higher than in February as Chinese steel mills adopt different strategies around steel production depending on the local situation with inventories and logistics.
The net outcome of this is that total steel production in March may not be as weak as anticipated.
Mills in some parts of the country have deepened production cuts due to high inventories and tight cash flow. Others have restarted or ramped up production due to improved logistics and demand, according to market sources.
Some independent electric arc furnaces have restarted production recently after the long break.
Warehouses in Chongqing were so full that steel had be placed outside of the warehouses. End-user demand are recovering, but at a very slow pace, and therefore any production restarts would be modest due to the pressure of soaring steel inventories.
No comments:
Post a Comment