China's iron and steel industry maintained steady operation in the first five months of this year, posting stable growth and showing signs of ongoing structural optimization, according to industry data.
During the Jan-May period, the country's major steel enterprises produced 355 million tons of crude steel, maintaining levels similar to the same period last year. They also produced 314 million tons of pig iron and 352 million tons of steel products, with year-on-year increases of 0.3 percent and 2.1 percent, respectively, according to the China Iron and Steel Association.
China's steel exports also saw significant growth in the same period, with net crude steel exports exceeding 50 million tons, an increase of 8.79 million tons over the same period last year.
At a steel trading company in Beijing, demand for common industrial steel is evident as trucks form lines waiting to load up with the commodity.
"These are called galvanized square tubes, industrial materials utilized for industrial manufacturing. After purchasing, customers process them into mechanical equipment parts," said Zhou Jianhua, head of the company.
The company used to specialize in construction steel materials, but there has been a significant rise in the shipment volume of industrial steel in recent years.
"The company's overall sales volume has increased by about 12 percent this year, with the primary source of this growth coming from industrial materials, mostly purchased by customers in machinery manufacturing or manufacturing industries undergoing a green transformation," Zhou said.
His company is not alone. According to industry insiders, China's steel consumption structure is experiencing a significant transformation, with the share of industrial steel continuing to increase while the share of construction steel declining.
Last year, the distribution between the two was roughly equal, but the proportion of industrial steel is expected to increase further in the future.
China's steel industry maintains steady operation in Jan-May: data
