It is still difficult for Baosteel to raise prices for the first time in the domestic steel market.

The domestic steel market has remained in a cold winter period since last September's “high-profile diving”, but recently the domestic steel industry’s leading Baosteel Group has raised steel prices for the first time in months. The industry believes this may be a sign of the end of the steel market in the winter.

In the price monitoring of the domestic steel trading platform Nishishin Shinkansen, the reporter saw that from the beginning of January to February 8, the domestic steel price was consolidating, and from February 8 to February 14 steel prices continued to fall sharply, 13 On the 14th and on the 14th, the number fell to 50 yuan in a row. The current domestic steel price has dropped to 4,150 yuan, with a drop of 2.35% in one week.

In the “glacial period” of the steel market, last Friday, the domestic steel industry benchmarking company Baosteel Group announced the price policy for steel products in March, and the price of the main plate product was generally raised, ranging from RMB 50-350 per ton. This is the first time that Baosteel has raised the ex-factory price of steel products since November last year. In the previous four months, Baosteel's factory prices were all adjusted downwards or flat. Analysts in the industry generally believe that Anshan Iron and Steel, Wuhan Iron and Steel will also follow the two major central enterprises will follow the increase in plate prices, the domestic sheet metal prices will recover in March, plate companies will first break away from the loss of hardships.

Zhang Lin, a researcher at the Beijing Lange Steel Information Research Center, told reporters that although Baosteel is a benchmark in the domestic market, it should be noted that the price increase is mainly in the sheet area and it is difficult for Baosteel to boost the domestic construction steel prices.

Zhang Lin said that consumer demand is weak and stocks are increasing. This is still the main reason for the current downturn in steel prices. At present, the billet, strip and mid-plate products are still under the depletion line of the steel plant, while the rebar, wire rod and other construction steel products are still within 100 yuan profit. Zhang Lin predicts that with the gradual recovery of construction in the March-April season, steel prices may fall out of the bottom, but at present, including government-guaranteed housing, it has not been able to effectively stimulate the steel market.

On February 10, Hebei Iron and Steel Group also released the ex-factory price of construction steel in mid-February and remained flat. The reporter noted that private steel mills with flexible prices in Hebei are still gradually lowering the ex-factory prices. For example, on February 9th, Xingtai Longhai Iron and Steel lowered the price of wire rod by 20 yuan per ton, and the ex-factory price of 6.5mm high-speed wire rod was 4,080 yuan. On the same day, Tangshan Yuefeng Steel also reduced the price of all angle steel by 50 yuan.

According to the statistics of the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA), in December last year, there were 26 large and medium-sized steel mills that had lost money in the country, with a monthly loss of 4.4 billion yuan. There were 8 large and medium-sized steel mills that suffered losses in 2011, an increase of 5 from 2010.

In addition, the total profit of large and medium-sized steel mills in China fell by 4.5% year-on-year in 2011. The annual sales margin was only 2.4%, which was lower than the 2.91% in 2010. In the analysis report of the Hebei Office of Industry and Technology, the reporter saw that as of last October, a total of 22 steel mills in Hebei province had suffered losses, an increase of 10 from September and a loss of 430 million yuan.