On January 29, the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) announced that in 2014 the overall sales revenues of China’s 88 large and medium-size steelmakers - all CISA members - totaled RMB 3.588207 trillion ($578.74 billion), down 2.98 percent year on year. In addition, the steelmakers in question achieved an aggregate net profit of RMB 30.444 billion ($4.91 billion) in the given year, up 40.36 percent year on year.
The CISA also stated that in 2014 China’s apparent crude steel consumption totaled 738 million mt, down 25.74 million mt or 3.37 percent year on year. However, considering that inventories held by steel traders and downstream users have declined, real consumption of crude steel in China remained stable year on year or just indicated a slight downtrend. The CISA said that real crude steel consumption in China will remain at high levels in the coming years, likely indicating either slight declines or slow growth.