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25-06-2012, 11:35 AM
Financial Times
China daily crude steel output rises to 2 million tonnes: CISA
CNBC.com - 49 minutes ago
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China's steel mills produced an average of 2 ... News. Blog Posts. Videos. Current DateTime: 07:40:30 24 Jun 2012 ...
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China's steel mills produced an average of 2 million tonnes of crude steel a day over the June 1-10 period, edging back to the record levels reached in early May, as large mills ramped up output, data from the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) showed on Wednesday.
Total inventories held by large and medium-sized steel mills in the first 10 days of June were 11.51 million tonnes, up 0.14 percent from the previous period and a 35 percent jump since the start of the year.
Although small and medium-sized mills have begun to pare output, CISA data shows that large steel makers in China, the world's biggest steel producer and consumer, raised production to increase economies of scale, which would help boost their profit margins.
Despite sluggish demand, steel output in the country remains high as large mills prefer to keep their margins razor-thin rather than lose market share to other rivals in the country's fragmented sector.
However, the poor demand may soon hit the mills, according to Hu Yanping, an analyst at consultancy firm CUsteel.
"We're beginning to see more mills extend their maintenance schedules because of a combination of weak demand and poor profitability. So overall production will likely fall in June," said Hu.
Chinese steel prices, as measured by rebar futures in Shanghai, are down around 1 percent this year.
Separately, spot iron ore prices <.IO62-CNI=SI> rose for the eighth straight session to $136.60 a tonne on Tuesday, marking its longest upward streak in seven months, on trade expectations of more Chinese mills replenishing stocks. <IRONORE/>
The following table shows changes in daily output since the beginning of the year.
(This story corrects steel inventories in paragraph 2 to 11.51 million tonnes (Not 115.1 million tonnes)
(Reporting by Fayen Wong; Editing by Ramya Venugopal)
China daily crude steel output rises to 2 million tonnes: CISA
CNBC.com - 49 minutes ago
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China's steel mills produced an average of 2 ... News. Blog Posts. Videos. Current DateTime: 07:40:30 24 Jun 2012 ...
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China's steel mills produced an average of 2 million tonnes of crude steel a day over the June 1-10 period, edging back to the record levels reached in early May, as large mills ramped up output, data from the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) showed on Wednesday.
Total inventories held by large and medium-sized steel mills in the first 10 days of June were 11.51 million tonnes, up 0.14 percent from the previous period and a 35 percent jump since the start of the year.
Although small and medium-sized mills have begun to pare output, CISA data shows that large steel makers in China, the world's biggest steel producer and consumer, raised production to increase economies of scale, which would help boost their profit margins.
Despite sluggish demand, steel output in the country remains high as large mills prefer to keep their margins razor-thin rather than lose market share to other rivals in the country's fragmented sector.
However, the poor demand may soon hit the mills, according to Hu Yanping, an analyst at consultancy firm CUsteel.
"We're beginning to see more mills extend their maintenance schedules because of a combination of weak demand and poor profitability. So overall production will likely fall in June," said Hu.
Chinese steel prices, as measured by rebar futures in Shanghai, are down around 1 percent this year.
Separately, spot iron ore prices <.IO62-CNI=SI> rose for the eighth straight session to $136.60 a tonne on Tuesday, marking its longest upward streak in seven months, on trade expectations of more Chinese mills replenishing stocks. <IRONORE/>
The following table shows changes in daily output since the beginning of the year.
(This story corrects steel inventories in paragraph 2 to 11.51 million tonnes (Not 115.1 million tonnes)
(Reporting by Fayen Wong; Editing by Ramya Venugopal)