In November this year, the purchasing managers' index (PMI) of the steel sector in China’s Hebei Province decreased to 41.0 percent, down 0.8 percentage points month on month, as announced by the Hebei Province Metallurgical Industry Association (MIA). In the given month, the trend of the steel sector in Hebei Province was the same as that for the whole of China, for which the PMI declined by 1.7 percentage point month on month to 36.6 percent, as announced by the China Steel Logistics Committee (CSLC).
In November, the overall new order index for Hebei Province’s steel sector stood at 38.6 percent, up 3.8 percentage points compared to the previous month.
The new export order index stood at 48.2 percent, up 7.3 percentage points amid the improvement of overseas demand.
In the given month, the production index for Hebei Province’s steel sector was at 34.1 percent, down 4.2 percentage points month on month.
At the same time, the inventory index for finished steel in Hebei Province decreased to 36.4 percent, down 6.2 percentage points month on month.
In addition, the raw material inventory index for the steel sector in Hebei decreased to 35.3 percent, down 2.4 percentage points month on month. The sharp declines in finished steel prices exerted a negative impact on raw material prices.
As for December, the demand for steel in China will remain slack amid the environmental protection measures implemented during the winter heating season.