Posted on 23 May 2025
The inventories of finished steel products held by traders across China under Mysteel's survey decreased for a second week during May 16-22, thinning by 398,500 tonnes on week, the latest data show.
But the pace of the fall in stocks had slowed from the 508,400 tonnes-drop recorded in the prior period, as demand from end-users contracted with wet season rains and hot weather sweeping many parts of the country, especially the southern provinces.
Total stocks of the five major steel items at traders' warehouses in the 132 cities throughout the country that Mysteel monitors dropped by 2.5% on week to 15.7 million tonnes as of Thursday, according to the survey. The five products are rebar, wire rod, hot-rolled coil (HRC), cold-rolled coil and medium plate.
Among the five items, rebar stocks dropped the most, sliding by 200,800 tonnes on week to 6.3 million tonnes by Thursday. HRC stocks declined by 111,900 tonnes on week to 3.7 million tonnes, the data also showed.
An industry observer attributed the slower decline in stocks to higher production among domestic steelmakers as well, as output of the five steel items during May 15-21 among the 184 Chinese mills Mysteel follows grew by 0.5% or 40,900 tonnes on week to reach 8.7 million tonnes.
"Thanks to the healthy steel margins they're still earning, many domestic mills are currently keen to ramp up production, which stands in stark contrast to the sluggish end-user demand," the source commented.
The spot trading volume of long steel items comprising rebar, wire rod and bar-in-coil among the 237 trading houses nationwide under Mysteel's coverage averaged only 98,894 tonnes/day during May 15-21, lower by 8.4% from the week before.
Stocks of the five major steel products in Mysteel's smaller-scale survey among the commercial warehouses in 35 cities dipped by 3.3% or 331,100 tonnes on week to 9.6 million tonnes by Thursday, as against the 3.8% on-week drop a week earlier.
Source:Mysteel Global
