Electric Furnace Mills Accelerated Production Resumptions, Operating Rate Rose 24.62% WoW This Week

Published: Mar 10, 2026 19:17

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As of March 10, the operating rate of 50 electric furnace steel mills nationwide mainly producing construction materials was 35.38%, up 24.62% WoW from the previous period; the capacity utilization rate was 29.34%, up 22.46% WoW; daily average production of construction materials was 65,300 mt, up 50,000 mt WoW.
During the survey period (March 3-March 10), as downstream operations gradually resumed, overall apparent consumption slightly rebounded, but the absolute level remained relatively low. The market mostly maintained cautious wait-and-see sentiment toward the outlook, and spot cargo transactions had not yet seen a significant volume increase.
Domestic electric furnace mills continued to resume production, with 24 additional electric furnace mills resuming production this week, driving a rapid rebound in the overall operating rate. However, affected by the recent rise in steel scrap prices, steelmaking costs at electric furnace mills increased somewhat, and enterprise profitability was weaker than before the holiday. Looking ahead, some electric furnace mills still have production resumption plans for next week, so the operating rate of domestic electric furnace mills is expected to continue rising next week.

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