Shanghai rebar steel prices hit 7-yr high on supply fears
Prices in China for rebar construction steel on Monday hit their highest in nearly seven years, boosted by concerns over tight supply.
Prices were buoyed by market chatter on Monday afternoon that mills in Jiangsu, China’s No.2 steelmaking province, could face tighter environmental inspections and be forced to cut output by half in November when an international trade fair is held in a nearby region.
However, an official at Jiangsu’s Iron and Steel Association and two steel mills in Jiangsu province told Reuters they had not received notice of any such moves from the government.
That followed market talk on Friday that Tangshan, the top steelmaking city in China, is considering bringing forward the start of planned winter production cuts by two months to Sept. 1, meaning there would be no gap between those and summer cuts due to end on Aug. 31.
