Posted on 11 Nov 2022
Inventories of the five major carbon steel products held by Chinese traders regularly canvassed by Mysteel declined for the fifth successive week during November 4-10, thinning by 636,300 tonnes on week, the latest survey results show.
Mysteel's weekly stocks survey among traders in 132 cities across the country found that their inventories of the five products approximated 15.2 million tonnes as of November 10, or down 4% on week. The five items comprise rebar, wire rod, hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil and medium plate.
Behind the steady reduction in stocks was the uptick seen in the traders' business, with the trading volume of rebar, wire rod and bar-in-coil among the 237 trading houses Mysteel checks rising 10.3% or 15,894 tonnes/day to average 169,781 t/d over November 3-9.
The decrease in stocks was also in line with lower steel production, as the output of the five items among the 184 steelmakers under Mysteel's tracking decreased for the second week over November 3-9, slipping by 1.9% or 182,200 tonnes on week to 9.4 million tonnes – the lowest since August 31.
Nonetheless, some market participants suggested that the pace of destocking may gradually slow in the future. They pointed to dropping temperatures in northern regions and resurgent COVID-19 outbreaks elsewhere in the country – such as in Central and South China's Zhenzhou and Guangzhou cities – saying that either reason would be enough to cause disruptions to actual demand.
Among the five steel products, rebar stocks had eased the most by November 10, falling by 280,700 tonnes on week to 5.9 million tonnes, while stocks of medium plate grew marginally by 11,600 tonnes to 2.1 million tonnes over the same period, the survey showed.
Meanwhile, steel inventories held by traders in Mysteel's former smaller sample across just 35 cities declined by 380,600 tonnes or 4% on week to 9.2 million tonnes as of November 10, the latest data found.
Source:Mysteel Global
