China reduced steel production by 7% m/m in April

In April 2025, Chinese steelmakers reduced steel production by 7% compared to the previous month to 86.02 million tons. At the same time, the volumes are in line with April 2024. This is evidenced by the data of the National Bureau of Statistics of China (NBS), Reuters reports.

The April results contradict analysts’ expectations, although they are still quite high.

The average daily steel production during the month amounted to 2.87 million tons, against 2.99 million tons in March and 2.86 million tons in April 2024. According to Mysteel, about 56% of China’s steel companies operated at a profit in April, up 3 percentage points month-on-month. Experts attribute the growth in profitability to fairly stable domestic demand and high export volumes.

Analysts note that after several years of losses due to the protracted real estate crisis, many steelmakers are seeking to increase production. This is likely to support the growth in smelting volumes in May.

In the first four months of 2025, China produced 345.35 million tons of steel, up 0.4% year-on-year. This growth was recorded despite Beijing’s plans, announced in March, to restructure the steel sector by limiting production.

However, the Chinese authorities have not yet released details on the timing and extent of the restrictions. The state-owned China Iron and Steel Industry Association (CISA) said on May 16 that the main measures to control production volumes would be implemented in the second half of the year. Their effectiveness will depend on the decisions of local authorities.

As GMK Center reported earlier, China’s steel companies reduced steel production by 1.7% year-on-year in 2024, producing 1.005 billion tons. This is the lowest figure in the last five years. Experts note that 2024 is likely to be the last year when steel production in China exceeded 1 billion tons.