In March this year, the purchasing managers' index (PMI) of the steel sector in China’s Hebei Province decreased to 48.4 percent, down 1.8 percentage points month on month, as announced by the Hebei Province Metallurgical Industry Association.
In March, the overall new order index for Hebei Province’s steel sector stood at 50.0 percent, down 3.6 percentage points compared to the previous month. Meanwhile, the new export order index for the sector was at 39.3 percent, down 10.7 percentage points month on month. In the given month, the production index for Hebei Province’s steel sector was at 48.7 percent, down 8.0 percentage points month on month, while the inventory index for finished steel in Hebei Province decreased to 40.3 percent, down 4.1 percentage points month on month. In addition, the raw material inventory index in Hebei Province declined to 42.1 percent, down 2.9 percentage points month on month.