Posted on 09 Sep 2025
Daily crude steel output among the member mills of the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) averaged 1.95 million tonnes/day during August 21-31, down by 8% or 168,000 t/d from mid-August, according to the association's latest release on September 5. The figure also represented a 6.1% drop on-year, according to the CISA data.
Based on the same dataset, CISA estimated that China's nationwide crude steel output over late-August totalled 2.42 million tonnes, posting a 9.5% drop from mid-August.
In an accompanying comment, CISA explained that the main reason for the decline in output was the mandated suspension of operations among many steel mills in North China including those in the nation's steel hub of Tangshan during August 25-September 3 to ensure good air quality.
The CISA release also revealed that in late August the total stocks held by the CISA member mills slipped by 4.4% or 690,000 tonnes from August 11-20 to sit low at 14.98 million tonnes. Despite the drop, the inventories were still higher by 3% or 440,000 tonnes compared to the corresponding eleven-day survey period last year.
This indicated that the impact of the production cuts was stronger than the decline in purchasing enthusiasm among end-users and traders, Mysteel Global notes. Market demand softened further during late-August as outdoor construction activity continued to be disrupted by the hot daytime temperatures of summer.
In late-August, the daily spot trading volume of construction steel items including rebar, wire rod and bar-in-coil among the 237 trading houses under Mysteel's tracking declined by 5.6% or 5,557 t/d from mid-August to average 94,203 t/d.
Meanwhile, Mysteel assessed the national price of HRB400E 20mm dia rebar – a pointer to Chinese steel market sentiment – at Yuan 3,326/tonne ($466/t) on August 29, logging a Yuan 21/t drop from the price on August 19 and reflecting the weakened market fundamentals late last month.
Source:Mysteel Global
