[SMM Blast Furnace Operating Rate] Improved Finished Product Transactions, Slight Increase in Pig Iron Production

According to the SMM survey, as of February 19, the operating rate of blast furnaces at 242 steel mills surveyed by SMM was 86.29%, up 0.45 percentage points WoW. The capacity utilisation rate of blast furnaces was 88.03%, up 0.36 percentage points WoW. The daily pig iron production of the sample steel mills averaged 2.375 million mt, up 9,700 mt WoW.

This week, three blast furnaces were under maintenance, while four resumed production. The blast furnaces under maintenance were mainly located in Hebei, while those resuming production were primarily in Hebei, Anhui, and Gansu. Recently, the finished product market has seen improved transactions, and previously maintained blast furnaces resumed production as planned, leading to a slight increase in pig iron production. Looking ahead to next week, three blast furnaces are expected to undergo maintenance, and five are expected to resume production. The blast furnaces under maintenance will mainly be in Hebei and Liaoning, while those resuming production will primarily be in Guangdong, Shandong, and Hubei. However, as the blast furnaces under maintenance have larger volumes, the overall pig iron production is expected to show a downward trend.