On November 30, the National Development and Reform Commission announced the operation of the steel industry from January to October 2020. The details are as follows:

1. Steel production keeps growing

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the national pig iron, crude steel, and steel products output from January to October were 741.7 million tons, 873.93 million tons, and 108.328 million tons, respectively, up 4.3%, 5.5% and 6.5% year-on-year.

2. Steel exports declined and imports increased

According to data from the General Administration of Customs, from January to October, the country’s cumulative steel exports totaled 44.425 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 19.3%, and the decline amplitude narrowed by 0.3 percentage points from January to September; from January to October, the country’s cumulative steel imports totaled 17.005 million tons, an year-on-year increase of 73.9%, and the increase amplitude expanded 1.7 percentage points from January to September.

3. Steel prices rose steadily

According to data from the China Iron and Steel Association, China’s steel price index rose to 107.34 points at the end of October, a year-on-year increase of 2.9%. From January to October, China’s steel price index averaged 102.93 points, a year-on-year decrease of 4.8%.

4. Corporate performance continued to improve

From January to October, China Iron and Steel Association key statistics of iron and steel enterprises to achieve sales revenue of 3.8 trillion yuan, an increase of 7.2% year-on-year; realized profits of 158.5 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 4.5%, and the decline amplitude narrowed 4.9 percentage points from January to September; The sales profit margin was 4.12%, a decrease of 0.5 percentage points from the same period last year.