【Blast Furnace Operating Rate】As Steel Mill Profits Continued to Shrink, Pig Iron Production Declined

According to an SMM survey, on November 27, the blast furnace operating rate of 242 steel mills surveyed by SMM was 89.16%, down 0.67% WoW. The capacity utilisation rate of blast furnaces was 89.75%, down 0.80% WoW. The daily pig iron production of the sample steel mills was 2.4 million mt, down 21,500 mt WoW.

Image 1: Blast Furnace Operating Rate & Capacity Utilisation Rate

Data Source: SMM

Image 2: Future Pig Iron Forecast

Data Source: SMM

During this period, steel mill profits further shrank, and some steel mills began to overhaul their blast furnaces due to losses. Some steel mills in north-west China entered the winter shutdown period due to temperature impacts, leading to a significant decline in local pig iron production. Overall, both the blast furnace operating rate and pig iron production showed a downward trend. Looking ahead to next week, based on the latest tracking by SMM, some blast furnaces that were previously under maintenance are expected to resume production. However, considering the current low profits, there may be additional maintenance, and the blast furnace operating rate and pig iron production may be lower than expected.

190 samples