How Is the Current Situation of Galvanized Sheets at the Beginning of the Traditional Peak Consumption Season in March? [SMM Analysis]

SMM March 7 News:

March is traditionally the "peak season" for zinc downstream industries. As the first week of March unfolds, how have galvanized sheet enterprises been performing recently? What are the market expectations for the "golden March and silver April"?

Domestic orders: With rising temperatures across regions, outdoor construction and other end-user projects are gradually recovering, driving a continuous increase in new orders for galvanized sheet plants. Additionally, enterprises in the home appliance and automotive industries have mostly resumed production after the holiday, and subsidy policies such as trade-in continue to promote consumption of some low and mid-end galvanized sheets. Overall, domestic orders for related galvanized sheets have shown a significant increase compared to February.

Profitability of orders: Since November last year, cold-rolled ferrous metals series prices have remained in a sluggish and volatile state. The decline in raw material prices has limited the price boost for galvanized sheet products. The market generally holds a "rush to buy amid continuous price rise and hold back amid price downturn" sentiment, leading to sustained compression of order profitability. Some enterprises have reduced production to minimize losses, and profitability has not shown significant improvement in March.

Regional analysis: Galvanized sheet plants that had suspended operations before the holiday have now fully resumed production, and most enterprises have returned to pre-holiday production levels in March. Although recent environmental protection warnings in Hebei, Tianjin, and Shandong have imposed certain restrictions on production for some enterprises, the overall impact has been relatively limited. The increase in production driven by order recovery is more pronounced, and domestic galvanized sheet plant operations are expected to see a seasonal surge in March.

In summary: According to SMM, although domestic galvanized sheet operations have significantly recovered recently, overall order performance remains somewhat mediocre and has not exceeded market expectations. Furthermore, with ongoing tariff disruptions, some enterprises are expressing concerns about the future performance of galvanized sheet exports. SMM will continue to monitor the subsequent performance of the galvanized sheet market.