In April 2025, China reduced steel production by 7% compared to March, to 86.02 million tons, not meeting analysts' expectations for growth amid high profits and active exports. However, production still remains at a fairly high level.
This is reported by Reuters with reference to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), SilkBridge reports.
At the same time, the April steel production volumes correspond to the indicator of the same period in 2024.
The average daily output of steel last month, according to calculations by Reuters, was about 2.87 million tons, compared with 2.99 million tons in March and 2.86 million tons in April 2024.
According to the Mysteel consulting company, about 56% of steel mills were operating profitably in April, compared with 53% in March. The company noted that good demand in China and active exports helped support production during the specified period.
According to analysts, steel mills are looking to increase production, especially after suffering severe losses in the last two years when demand was undermined by the prolonged recession in the real estate sector. They add that this is likely to boost production in May.
In the first four months of 2025, China produced 345.35 million tons of steel, up 0.4% year-on-year, despite Beijing unveiling plans in March to restructure the steel sector by reducing production. However, Beijing has not yet disclosed significant details, including the timing and extent of this reduction.
The state-owned China Metallurgical Association (CISA) said on May 16 that control over steel production will mainly be carried out in the second half of the year, depending on how local governments fulfill their obligations.
