[SMM blast furnace operating rate] Annual maintenance of blast furnaces increases, pig iron production continues to decline

According to the SMM survey, as of May 21, the operating rate of blast furnaces at 242 steel mills surveyed by SMM was 88.41%, down 0.23 percentage points MoM. The capacity utilisation rate of blast furnaces was 90.08%, down 0.37 percentage points MoM. The daily average pig iron production of the sampled steel mills was 2.4303 million mt, down 10,000 mt MoM.

During this period, 4 blast furnaces underwent maintenance, while 1 resumed production. The blast furnaces undergoing maintenance were mainly concentrated in Shandong, Liaoning, and Inner Mongolia regions, while the blast furnaces that resumed production were mainly in Liaoning. According to SMM's tracking, the overall profitability of steel mills is currently moderate, and most maintenance activities are part of normal annual maintenance. However, there has been a noticeable decrease in the number of blast furnaces resuming production, leading to an overall downward trend in pig iron production. Looking ahead to the next period, based on current tracking, pig iron production from blast furnaces at steel mills is expected to continue its downward trend. Steel mills in Shanxi and the north-east China region have reported receiving production restriction notices, suggesting that maintenance plans may increase in the future, potentially leading to a further decline in pig iron production.