Three Major Reasons for the Difference in Growth of Deposits and Loans in May

The following table shows the ferrous and nonferrous metals movement on the SHFE and DCE on 20 Apr , 2026

In March 2026, China produced 87.04 million mt of crude steel, down 6.3% YoY, with daily production at 2.8077 million mt/day; produced 73.28 million mt of pig iron, down 3.3% YoY, with daily production at 2.3639 million mt/day; produced 130.98 million mt of steel products, down 2.3% YoY, with daily production at 4.2252 million mt/day. From January to March, China's cumulative crude steel production totaled 248 million mt, down 4.6% YoY, with cumulative daily production at 2.7506 million mt; pig iron production totaled 211 million mt, down 2.9% YoY, with cumulative daily production at 2.3442 million mt; steel products production totaled 351 million mt, down 1.7% YoY, with cumulative daily production at 3.9049 million mt.

[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review] SS Futures Weakened, Spot Stainless Steel Largely Stable SMM, April 20: SS futures trended lower and pulled back. During the Friday night session, SS futures dropped sharply. Although a slight recovery followed, upward momentum was insufficient, and the overall market remained in the doldrums. As of the midday close, the most-traded SS contract was quoted at 14,960 yuan/mt. Spot market side, affected by the pullback in SS futures, a major stainless steel mill released a new round of guidance prices in the morning. Although prices were raised, the increase fell short of market expectations, and stainless steel traders' offers were largely stable. The most-traded SS futures contract pulled back. At 10:15 AM, SS2605 was quoted at 14,960 yuan/mt, down 135 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Spot premiums for 304/2B in the Wuxi area ranged from 10-210 yuan/mt. In the spot market, the average price of cold-rolled 201/2B coils in Wuxi remained flat; for cold-rolled trimmed-edge 304/2B coils, the Wuxi average price was largely stable, while the Foshan average price rose by 50 yuan/mt; cold-rolled 316L/2B coils in the Wuxi area rose by 50 yuan/mt; hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coils were quoted stable in Wuxi; cold-rolled 430/2B coils in both Wuxi and Foshan remained stable. The stainless steel market is currently in the traditional peak season of "Golden March and Silver April." Driven by futures, spot offers strengthened somewhat, but downstream end-users maintained a cautious wait-and-see sentiment, concerned about short-term price fluctuations. Purchases showed no significant increase in volume, with transactions mostly consisting of arbitrage purchases by trading firms engaging in both spot and futures market and cargo pick-up for earlier orders. Overall demand did not fully match the price gains. Futures side, ...