According to customs statistics, China exported 10.578 million tonnes of steel in May, an increase of 947,000 tonnes or 9.8% year-on-year; steel imports stood at 481,000 tonnes, down 156,000 tonnes or 24.5% from a year earlier.

From January to May, China’s total steel exports reached 48.469 million tonnes, up 3.958 million tonnes or 8.9% year-on-year; total steel imports were 2.553 million tonnes, a decrease of 490,000 tonnes or 16.1% from the same period last year.

In May, China imported 98.131 million tonnes of iron ore, a year-on-year decrease of 3.902 million tonnes or 3.8%. The average import price at customs was USD 96.2/tonne, down USD 1.9/tonne from the previous month.

From January to May, cumulative iron ore imports amounted to 486.409 million tonnes, down 26.572 million tonnes or 5.2% year-on-year. The average import price stood at USD 98.5/tonne, a decline of USD 20.5/tonne compared with the same period last year.