Downward Pressure in China Iron and Steel Industry in the First Quarter

From the operation of China steel industry in the first quarter of 2019, downward pressure has emerged, which is not optimistic. In the first quarter of 2019, influenced by several factors, steel production grew too fast, 9% year-on-year. China’s crude steel production accounted for 52% of the world's total, and reached a new high level.

The low price of steel materials and the high mineral price have reduced the benefit of steel mills by 38% in the first two months of 2019. The profit margin of steel mills has dropped from an average of 6.9% last year to 3.5% now. The loss of loss-making enterprises has increased by 10 percentage points, and nearly a quarter of them have lost in the first two months.

We don't have the high expectation of 2019's benefits as last year's, nor are we willing to get into trouble again. Stable operation has become the top priority for China Iron and Steel Industry in 2019.