In July this year, the purchasing managers index (PMI) for the Chinese steel sector was at 54.8 percent, up 3.2 percentage points as compared to June, as announced by the China Steel Logistics Committee (CSLC), which is part of the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP).
In addition, in July the production index for the steel sector increased by 4.2 percentage points compared to the previous month to 56.7 percent. Meanwhile, in July the sub-index for new orders in the steel sector saw a rise of 6.0 percentage points month on month to 58.7 percent.
In the given month, the finished steel inventory index decreased to 46.9 percent, down 2.4 percentage points month on month, the index for new export orders saw a month-on-month decrease of 6.4 percentage points to 43.3 percent, while the purchase price index of raw materials in the Chinese steel sector stood at 56.2 percent, indicating a drop of 6.0 percentage points month on month.