[SMM Blast Furnace Operating Rate] Profits Support Blast Furnace Production, Pig Iron Production Rises Slightly

According to the SMM survey, as of July 19, the operating rate of blast furnaces at 242 steel mills surveyed by SMM was 87.41%, up 0.13 percentage point MoM. The capacity utilization rate of blast furnaces was 89.41%, up 0.18 percentage point MoM. The daily average pig iron production of the sampled steel mills was 2.4166 million mt, up 4,800 mt MoM.

During this period, 3 blast furnaces were under maintenance and 1 resumed production. The blast furnaces under maintenance were mainly concentrated in the Shanxi and Liaoning regions, while the blast furnaces that resumed production were mainly concentrated in Henan. Overall, the current overall profitability of steel mills is moderate, and their willingness to conduct voluntary maintenance is low. Currently, most blast furnaces that have halted production are undergoing normal maintenance. Looking ahead to next week, pig iron production is expected to decline, mainly due to production cuts implemented by individual steel mills in the Liaoning region, coupled with the fact that some regions have indicated receiving verbal notifications related to crude steel output reduction, which may lead to pig iron production falling short of current tracking expectations.