The China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) has announced that in early June (June 1-10) this year the average aggregate daily crude steel output of large and medium-sized steel enterprises in China - all CISA members - totaled 2.083 million mt, up 3.8 percent compared to late May (May 21-31) this year.
In late May, the average aggregate daily crude steel output of large and medium-sized steel enterprises in China had totaled 2.006 million mt, down 4.3 percent compared to mid-May (May 11-20) this year.
Inventory levels of the large and medium-sized steel enterprises in China also increased in the given period. As of June 10, the finished steel inventories of large and medium-sized steel enterprises in China amounted to 16.87 million mt, increasing by 6.6 percent compared to May 31.
The bigger increase in inventory levels compared to the increase in crude steel output in early June indicates that demand was slack in the given period, amid the traditional off-season in June, with the rainy season in southern China and high temperatures slowing down construction activities at project sites, which exerted a negative impact on the demand for steel and contributed to the rises in inventories.
