Maintenance/Resumption of Blast Furnaces Increased, Blast Furnace Operating Rate Slightly Decreased

According to the SMM survey, as of July 17, the operating rate of blast furnaces was 94.16%, down 0.2% WoW. The capacity utilization rate of blast furnaces was 95.97%, down 0.41%. The average daily pig iron output of the sample steel mills was 2.2995 million mt, down 5,000 mt WoW.

During this period, three blast furnaces were under maintenance, including two in east China and one in north China; two blast furnaces resumed production, both in north China; one steel mill completed capacity replacement. This week, both the blast furnace operating rate and pig iron output slightly decreased. Looking ahead, in the coming weeks, more blast furnaces are expected to resume production, with fewer new maintenance plans, leading to a certain increase in pig iron output. However, considering the impact of the current off-season for steel consumption and the continuous shrinkage of steel profits, temporary maintenance increases by steel mills cannot be ruled out. Therefore, it is expected that in the coming weeks, pig iron output will continue to narrowly fluctuate.