In February this year, the purchasing managers' index (PMI) of the steel sector in China's Hebei Province decreased to 34.0 percent, down 5.6 percentage points month on month and below the threshold of 50 points for the tenth consecutive month, as announced by the Hebei Province Metallurgical Industry Association.
In February, the overall new order index for Hebei Province's steel sector stood at 22.1 percent, down 7.0 percentage points compared to the previous month. Meanwhile, the new export order index for the sector was at 36.4 percent, up 11.4 percentage points month on month. In the given month, the production index for Hebei Province's steel sector decreased to 27.1 percent, down 15.1 percentage points month on month.
In February, the inventory index for finished steel in Hebei Province rose to 54.4 percent, up 3.7 percentage points, while the raw material inventory index stood at 28.6 percent, down 1.4 percentage points, both month on month.