Yesterday we saw a strong rebound in the China steel PMI via MySteel:
China’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the steel industry returned to the expansion zone, scoring 51.5 after a strong month-on-month growth of 5.9 basis points or a recovery for the second month after struggling in the contraction range over November-December 2018, amid better-than-expected demand but lower output, according to the latest release by the official index compiler – CFLP Steel Logistics Professional Committee (CSLPC) on January 31.
In January, among all the sub-indices, that for new orders rose substantially by 13.9 basis points on month to 53.4, and that for new exports reversed up to by 8.3 basis points to 44.1 after having declining for the previous two months, as domestic demand fared better than expected because of a warmer winter so far and contractor’s rushing for project completion ahead of the Chinese New Year holiday that falls on early February in 2019, according to CSLPC.