MNI BRIEF: China Steel PMI Rises Two Consecutive Months 

China’s steel industry PMI reached 46% in March, up 0.9 percentage points from February, marking the second month of improvement but below the expansion mark of 50, the China Logistics Information Centre announced on Monday.

The trend reflects the weak recovery of the industry, said Pan Fujie, director at the Steel Logistics Committee of the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing.

“After the Spring Festival, the market showed stable production, slow demand and falling prices," Pan added, noting that steel prices are expected to rebound with seasonal peak demand in April. 

China’s bid to use more scrap steel could reduce iron-ore consumption by a greater magnitude than new import volumes expected from high purity Guinean mines set to open later this year, advisors and analysts told MNI. (See MNI: China Looks To Steel Scrap As Iron Ore Diver)