In September this year, the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for the steel sector in China's Hebei Province fell to 48.7 percent, down 6.8 percentage points month-on-month, the Hebei Iron and Steel Industry Association (MIA) announced. This month, the Hebei steel sector PMI performance was similar to that of the whole of China, which fell 2.1 percentage points month-on-month to 47.7 percent, as announced by the China Steel Logistics Committee (CSLC).
During this period, the average prices of steel channel and hot-rolled steel strip decreased by 0.5 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively, the average prices of both high-speed wire rod and welded steel pipe remained stable, and the average price of rebar increased by 0.2 percent each week.
During the same period, the average prices of coking coal and smokeless lump coal rose by 2.1 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively, while the average price of thermal coal remained unchanged week after week.
