In the January-April period this year, China’s HRC and CRC production totaled 70.49 million mt and 16.689 million mt, down 7.2 percent and up 5.0 percent year on year, respectively, according to China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
In April alone, China’s HRC and CRC production amounted to 17.598 million mt and 4.596 million mt, down 4.9 percent and up 8.8 percent year on year, while down 6.7 percent and 4.7 percent month on month, respectively.
In April, HRC prices in the Chinese domestic market moved up amid the improved demand from downstream users in the traditional peak season and stock build-ups ahead of the Labor Day holiday (May 1-5). HRC prices reached a peak in April at RMB 3,480/mt ($509/mt) on April 23, April 27, April 29-30, with the lowest level during the month seen at RMB 3,370/mt ($493/mt) on April 2, according to SteelOrbis’ data.
As previously reported by SteelOrbis, China’s steel sheet/plate exports totaled 20.06 million mt in the January-April period this year, down 16.6 percent year on year, 0.3 percentage points faster than the declining pace recorded in the first three months this year, according to the Chinese customs authorities.
In April alone, China’s steel sheet/plate exports amounted to 5.46 million mt, down 17.5 percent year on year,
Steel plates/sheets are the primary target of antidumping investigations against Chinese steel products overseas, which also exerted a negative impact on outputs in China in April.