Posted on 11 Sep 2026
Retail stocks of the five major carbon steel items held by the Chinese traders that Mysteel regularly checks dropped faster during September 4-10, according to the results of Mysteel's latest weekly survey.
As of September 10, the combined inventories of rebar, wire rod, hot-rolled coil (HRC), cold-rolled coil (CRC) and medium plate held by traders in the 132 cities Mysteel monitors had thinned by 1.6% or by 303,500 tonnes on week to 18.9 million tonnes, the survey results revealed. The destocking rate compares with last week's 0.5% on-week decline, as Mysteel Global reported.
By product, stocks of rebar, wire rod, CRC and medium plate all posted on-week declines, while those of HRC rose just marginally this week. Rebar and medium plate stocks recorded the steepest drops, the survey results show.
Specifically, as of September 10 total rebar stocks had eased by 2.7% or 216,400 tonnes on week to 7.66 million tonnes, while inventories of medium plate had slid by 1.7% or 41,900 tonnes on week to 2.43 million tonnes.
Some steelmakers responded to higher costs by maintaining their production pace at recent lows, Mysteel Global noted.
Combined production of the five steel products among the 137 steelmakers under Mysteel's coverage totaled 7.94 million tonnes during September 3-9, edging down again by 0.2% or 11,800 tonnes on week after a brief one-week rebound.
On the other hand, end-user demand picked up moderately this week as some entered the market to replenish finished steel stocks, Mysteel Global noted.
For instance, the combined tonnage of rebar, wire rod and bar-in-coil traded among the 237 trading houses nationwide under Mysteel's tracking averaged 97,220 tonnes/day over September 3-9, higher by 7,195 t/d or 8% on week.
Domestic finished steel prices headed in different directions this week. Mysteel assessed the national price of HRB400E 20mm dia rebar on September 9 at Yuan 3,349/tonne ($499/t) including the 13% VAT, up by Yuan 13/t on week, while the average price of Q235 4.75mm HRC registered Yuan 3,368/t on the same day, dropping by Yuan 7/t on week.
Meanwhile, finished steel inventories held by traders in Mysteel's smaller sample of 35 cities also recorded an on-week dip, with the tonnage totaling 11.62 million tonnes as of September 10, down by 1.4% or by 162,200 tonnes from September 3.
Source:Mysteel Global
