China’s pig iron and crude steel production inched higher over April 1-20 from March levels, data from the China Iron and Steel Association showed April 24.

The country’s pig iron and crude steel output could increase further in late April, but the growth in China’s overall steel production would continue to remain constrained due to weak domestic demand, mill and trading sources said.

China’s daily pig iron for April 11-20 fell by 0.4% from early April to 2.187 million mt, while daily crude steel over the same period inched up by 0.3% from early April to 2.533 million mt, according to CISA data.

As a result, daily pig iron and crude steel output over April 1-20 increased by 2.1% and 1.1% from the average in March to 2.192 million mt and 2.53 million mt respectively, CISA data showed.

CISA and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) have different statistical methods for China’s crude steel output, resulting in different output figures. But CISA’s steel production trends are usually in line with the NBS.

Some market sources said the uptrend in pig iron and crude steel output had continued into late April, due to relatively decent profit margins with seasonal demand recovery.