On March 17, the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) held a steel market seminar with some of the key steelmakers in China, including Hebei Province-based Hebei Iron and Steel Group, and Anshan Iron and Steel Group, to study and analyze the operation of the steel market. According to the enterprises attending the seminar, the Chinese construction industry will enter a phrase of booming activity to catch up with deadlines for projects, while the manufacturing industry will replenish its stocks, which will exert a positive impact on demand for steel. Currently, inventories of steel are lower than the levels recorded in the same period of 2020, but are higher than in other years. The CISA has forecast that inventories of steel will decrease in the second quarter of the current year, while it noted that rising raw material prices have eroded steel enterprises’ profits.
CISA vice president Luo Tiejun said that the key work this year will be focused on controlling production capacity and ensuring effective supply, promoting investment in iron ore mining and changing the pricing mechanism, seeking for ultra-low emissions, and stabilizing steelmakers’ profitability.
