Today, the DCE Iron Ore futures contract fluctuated rangebound, initially jumping and then pulling back throughout the day. The most-traded contract I2509 eventually closed at 703, with a daily decline of 0.14%. Traders' willingness to sell was moderate, with no speculative transactions observed;

[SMM Rebar Daily Review: Seasonal Demand in Off-Season, Contradictions in Industrial Sector Gradually Emerging] This week, rebar prices fluctuated rangebound, with the nationwide average price at 3,087 yuan/mt, down 10 yuan/mt MoM.

[Domestic Iron Ore Brief Review: Iron Ore Concentrates Prices in West Liaoning Continue to Fluctuate in the Doldrums] The domestic ore market in west Liaoning is sluggish, with some ore processors refusing to budge on prices amid no inventory pressure. However, the current ex-factory prices of iron ore concentrates (66% grade, wet basis, excluding tax) remain relatively stable at 680-690 yuan/mt. Traders lack confidence in the market outlook and are unwilling to purchase at high prices, resulting in a clear stalemate and wait-and-see attitude from both sides.

[SMM Steel Mill Guidance Price] Guidance Prices for Different Series of Stainless Steel at Large Domestic Steel Mills on June 13

[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review: Stainless Steel Demand in Off-Season, Supply-Demand Imbalance, Prices Running at Low Levels] SMM reported on June 13 that today, the SS futures market was in the doldrums, oscillating between 12,600 and 12,500 yuan/mt. This week, the stainless steel spot market continued to operate weakly, with a prominent supply-demand imbalance and persistently sluggish downstream demand. Earlier, steel mills implemented price-limiting measures to stabilize selling prices, but shipments were hindered, leading to a continuous accumulation of in-plant inventory and a significant increase in pressure. During the week, steel mills temporarily lifted the price limits, prompting agents and traders to cut prices for sales promotions, which drove stainless steel prices to plummet to a new five-year low. Although steel mills subsequently resumed their price-limiting strategies, prices remained stable at low levels. The low prices during the week stimulated traders to replenish their stocks, alleviating the pressure on steel mills' in-plant inventory. However, social inventory surged, approaching 1 million mt again, indicating that stainless steel consumption still faces significant pressure in the future. In the futures market, the most-traded 2508 contract was oscillating. At 10:30 a.m., SS2508 was quoted at 12,540 yuan/mt, down 160 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. In the Wuxi region, the spot premiums/discounts for 304/2B stainless steel ranged from 380 to 630 yuan/mt. In the spot market, the cold-rolled 201/2B coils in Wuxi and Foshan were both quoted at 7,750 yuan/mt; the average price of cold-rolled mill-edge 304/2B coils was 12,875 yuan/mt in Wuxi and 12,875 yuan/mt in Foshan; the cold-rolled 316L/2B coils were priced at 24,000 yuan/mt in Wuxi and 24,000 yuan/mt in Foshan; the hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coils were quoted at 23,350 yuan/mt in both regions...

According to the SMM survey, as of June 11, the operating rate of blast furnaces at 242 steel mills surveyed by SMM was 88.15%, down 0.11 percentage point WoW. The capacity utilisation rate of blast furnaces was 89.51%, down 0.05 percentage point WoW. The daily average pig iron production of the sampled steel mills was 2.4149 million mt, down 1,400 mt WoW.