[SMM Blast Furnace Operating Rate] As Annual Maintenance Increased, Pig Iron Production Continued to Decline

According to the SMM survey, as of December 18, the operating rate of blast furnaces at 242 steel mills surveyed by SMM stood at 85.47%, down 0.76 percentage points WoW. The capacity utilisation rate of blast furnaces was 87.01%, down 0.56 percentage points WoW. The daily pig iron production of the sample steel mills averaged 2.3476 million mt, down 15,000 mt WoW.

Image 1: Blast Furnace Operating Rate & Capacity Utilisation Rate

Data Source: SMM

Image 2: Future Pig Iron Forecast

Data Source: SMM

This week, six blast furnaces underwent maintenance, while two resumed production. The maintenance activities were mainly concentrated in central and east China. As the year-end approaches, some steel mills have implemented annual maintenance plans, coupled with recent pressure on steel mill profits, leading to weaker production enthusiasm. Overall, the pig iron production of blast furnaces at steel mills showed a downward trend. Looking ahead to next week, based on SMM current tracking, some steel mills are still expected to carry out maintenance plans, and certain regions will continue to face environmental protection-driven production restrictions. Blast furnace operating rates and pig iron production are expected to decline further.

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