In September this year, the purchasing managers' index (PMI) of the steel sector in China’s Hebei Province decreased to 47.8 percent, down 2.4 percentage points month on month, as announced by the Hebei Province Metallurgical Industry Association.
In September of the current year, the overall new order index for Hebei Province’s steel sector stood at 48.4 percent, down 4.4 percentage points compared to the previous month. Meanwhile, the new export order index for the sector was at 62.5 percent, increasing by 17.0 percentage points month on month. In the given month, the production index for Hebei Province’s steel sector was at 50.0 percent, down 1.3 percentage point month on month. In September, the inventory index for finished steel in Hebei Province increased to 43.5 percent, up 8.8 percentage points month on month. In addition, the raw material inventory index in Hebei Province declined to 48.5 percent, down 4.1 percentage points month on month.