Many Galvanizing Plants Closed During Labour Day Holiday, Operating Rates Declined [SMM Galvanizing Weekly Review]

SMM May 8: The operating rate of the galvanizing industry was 47.76% this week, down 13.45 percentage points WoW. Raw material side, zinc prices rose this week, and downstream purchase willingness was low, but some long-term contract deliveries arrived, and zinc ingot inventories at galvanising enterprises edged up. The main reason for the decline in operating rates was that during the Labour Day holiday, most galvanizing plants took 1 to 5 days off, with some even exceeding 10 days, leading to a significant reduction in actual production time. By specific sector: Galvanized pipes: Due to weakened demand during the holiday, both orders and shipping speeds declined, and finished product inventories accumulated. Galvanized structural components: Steel tower orders were relatively stable, PV orders remained weak, traffic guardrail orders began to improve, and export orders remained robust. The market currently showed a polarized trend, with large enterprises having stable and sufficient orders, while small enterprises faced insufficient orders. Most enterprises resumed production this week, and operating rates are expected to increase to around 59.73% next week.