In the January-April period this year, China’s rebar and wire rod outputs amounted to 74.17 million mt and 46.416 million mt, down 1.0 percent and 3.1 percent year on year, respectively, 0.9 and 0.2 percentage points slower compared to the decrease rates recorded in the first quarter of the year, according to China’s National Bureau of Statistics.
However, in April alone, China’s rebar production totaled 21.116 million mt, up 1.1 percent year on year against a year-on-year decline of 2.9 percent in March. Wire rod production amounted to 12.937 million mt in April, down 3.1 percent year on year, but the decrease rate was lower than 5.5 percent drop in March and the 3.3 percent decline in the first three months of the year.
Declines in output in the first quarter and good demand from downstream users amid the resumption of construction have resulted in decreases in inventories. According to the data issued by the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA), as of May 10, China’s rebar and wire rod inventories amounted to 7.55 million mt and 2.88 million mt, respectively, down 9.1 percent and 8.3 percent from April 30.