China's stainless steel crude steel production reached 20.47 million tons in the first half of 2025

1. Yield

In the first half of 2025, the crude steel output of large-scale stainless steel manufacturers in China was 20.47 million tons, an increase of 1.04 million tons year-on-year, an increase of 5.36%.

The output of each series has increased:

The 200 series output was 6.3 million tons, an increase of 284,000 tons year-on-year, an increase of 4.72%;

The 300 series output was 10.37 million tons, an increase of 481,000 tons year-on-year, an increase of 4.86%;

The 400 Series output was 3.79 million tons, an increase of 276,000 tons year-on-year, an increase of 7.85%.

The output of long materials, plate rolls and narrow bands has increased:

The output of wide-width plate roll crude steel was 14.87 million tons, an increase of 650,000 tons year-on-year, an increase of 4.57%;

The output of narrowband crude steel was 2.81 million tons, an increase of 129,000 tons year-on-year, an increase of 4.8%;

The output of stainless steel long crude steel was 2.78 million tons, an increase of 261,000 tons year-on-year, an increase of 10.38%.

At the beginning of the year, affected by the Spring Festival holiday and the sluggish downstream demand, many steel mills successively launched plans to suspend production and maintenance, and production from January to February was in the low range of the first half of the year. As downstream demand gradually recovers after the holiday, coupled with the rise in raw materials, the cost support for stainless steel has become stronger, both futures and spot prices have been raised, and steel mills’ profits have recovered, and production in April reached its highest point in the first half of the year to around 3.7 million tons. Subsequently, tariffs between China and the United States continued to compete, downstream products were hindered, market demand weakened, stainless steel prices continued to fall, steel mills' profits shrank, and production decreased month by month from May to June. It is expected that production schedule will drop slightly to around 3.42 million tons in July.

2. The apparent consumption of stainless steel increased by 3.1% year-on-year in the first half of 2025

In terms of demand, the tariffs of China and the United States have made the downstream export grabbing effect appear in the first quarter, and the export demand for stainless steel and downstream products has increased. In early May, a joint statement between China and the United States released that the tariff game has been eased. Overall, domestic stainless steel consumption has rebounded slightly. In the first half of 2025, the apparent consumption of domestic stainless steel is expected to be 17.2 million tons, an increase of 510,000 tons year-on-year, an increase of 3.1%.

3. Inventory accumulation in late June

In late June 2025, the inventory of major circulating markets, including statistics, was 1.1727 million tons, an increase of 114,000 tons year-on-year compared with late June 2024, an increase of 10.8%.

In January, due to the Spring Festival holiday, market transactions entered a semi-stagnant state, steel mills continued to arrive, and market inventory accumulated significantly from January to February. From March to April, stainless steel futures and spot prices rose resonantly, downstream demand gradually recovered, and market transaction volume increased, driving the continued sales of inventory. From May to June, steel mill output remained at a high level, but there was no significant boost on the demand side, raw material cost support weakened, stainless steel prices fell to the lowest point in recent years, and the market was pessimistic, mainly based on urgent demand procurement, and inventory continued to accumulate at the end of the second quarter.

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