Posted on 18 May 2021
China's crude steel output rose to a record high in April as wide profit margins and strong global steel demand drove mills to maximise operations.
Crude steel output in April exceeded the previous record high of 94.85mn t in August 2020, China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said. Average crude steel output rose by 7.6pc to 3.26mn t/d in April from 3.03mn t/d in March. The pace of the rise in April also surpassed the previous record of 3.09mn t/d in September 2020.
Pig iron output in April rose by 3.8pc on the year, a slower rate of growth than overall crude steel output because of a recovery in scrap-based electric arc furnaces from low utilisation rates a year ago.
Shanghai prices for hot-rolled coil (HRC) rose to 6,750 yuan/t ($1,048/t) and for rebar rose to Yn6,050/t ($939/t) by 10 May, the highest levels since Argus started the series in 2016 and 2018 respectively. Tangshan billet ex-works prices also increased to a record high of Yn5,820/t on 13 May, after production curbs tightened the city's steel supplies.
Steel prices in overseas market showed a similar upward trend amid tight supplies. The Argus HRC ex-works northwest Europe index increased by €162.25/t to €1,008.25/t from 31 March to 30 April. India's domestic HRC prices assessed by Argus rose by $101/t to $838/t during the same period. Soaring global steel prices also boosted Chinese mills' export interest to push up April steel exports to a 4½-year high of 7.973mn t. Chinese producers are actively expanding output given strong steel demand in both Chinese domestic and seaborne markets.
China's crude steel output has been staying high this year despite the country's call for lower output in 2021.
"China remains the biggest developing country in the world switching from its extensive, high-invest and high-consumption mode to a resource-conserving pattern. The pressure is still heavy for China to achieve its carbon emission goals," NBS spokesperson Fu Linghui said.
Source:Argus
