In the January-March period this year, China’s rebar production output totaled 57.16 million mt, up 1.6 percent year on year, according to China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
In the first three months of this year, wire rod production amounted to 35.207 million mt, up 7.9 percent year on year.
In the given period, China’s welded pipe production reached 6.456 million mt, up 20.4 percent year on year.
In March alone, China’s rebar, wire rod and welded pipe production amounted to 23.284 million mt, 13.533 million mt and 6.456 million mt, up 12.1 percent, 9.7 percent and 20.4 percent, respectively, year on year.
Rebar prices have moved up first, with the highest level of RMB 4,397/mt being seen on March 14, and the lowest level of RMB 4,147/mt recorded on January 1-2, according to SteelOrbis’ data. However, since the demand for rebar was as good as market players had expected, and the declining trends seen in iron ore prices and rebar futures prices, rebar prices moved down since mid-March, and this downtrend has continued in April. It is expected that rebar producers will implement maintenance works or reduce outputs in late April and early May, which will bolster rebar prices to some extent.