China steel industry saw the value of its total assets increased nearly three times between 2005 (RMB 15.29tn) and 2011 (RMB 44.41tn). Cumulative revenue for the industry during the first six months of 2012 was RMB 6.14tr, or 26.21% of 2011’s annual revenue. The industry was reported to have made no profit in the first six months of 2012 due to overcapacity.
China has become a net exporter of steel products since 2006, reducing its imports of steel products over the years. Only 7mn tons of steel products were imported in the first six months of this year, amid overcapacity and slowdown in demand.
China increased its crude steel production by 7.45% y-o-y to 684.9mn tons in 2011. Monthly crude steel production surged to a record 61.6mn tons in March this year and production level maintained above 60mn in the following months. Annual inventory level of steel products by large and medium steel mills topped 117.1mn tons, a record-high level, in 2011. Domestic iron ore production rose for six consecutive months since January 2012 despite weak demand and rising inventory level.
Key Findings:
- China’s domestic steel composite price index shows that average prices of all steel products have fallen since September 2011.
- Inventory level of iron ore at ports across the country has been rising as the result of weak steel demand.
- Large- and medium-sized steel mills in China saw their inventory levels increase by 31.98% y-o-y in the first half of 2012.
This is only a small extract of the insights in the China Steel Industry report; read more and purchase>>
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